


i go back to you (every time)

by brandnewfashion



Category: Marvel, Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616, Marvel Adventures: Avengers, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Cupcakes, Domestic Avengers, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Humor, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Magic, Marriage Proposal, Mechanic Tony Stark, Modern Royalty, Puppies, Sugar Daddy Steve Rogers, Temporary Amnesia, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2020-10-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:40:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 26
Words: 27,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27008977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brandnewfashion/pseuds/brandnewfashion
Summary: “I think… Sometimes I think I’m dreaming or something,” Tony admitted. “That one day, I’m going to wake up and I’ll find out that the past three years weren’t real because it all just seems too damn good to be true.”A series of Steve/Tony ficlets and AU's (some originally posted on tumblr and some never posted at all) featuring: random domestic fluff, angst, getting together, proposals, first kisses, a Modern Royalty AU, a Sugar Daddy!Steve AU, and more!
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Comments: 14
Kudos: 132





	1. pillowtalk (MCU)

**Author's Note:**

> Sleepy conversations and fluff.
> 
> This was originally posted on tumblr 4 years ago [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/140431194688/pillow-talk-stevetony-1).

“Steve,” Tony whispered. “Hey, Steve.”

“’m sleepin,’” Steve mumbled. 

Tony sat up and looked down at the man lying next to him—his face was smushed against the pillow, his hair unkempt, and the boxers he had haphazardly thrown on were riding so low around his hipbones that Tony could see the array of bruises that would surely be gone by the morning. Tony had no idea how anyone could look so innocent and yet so absolutely _wrecked_ at the same time, but he _did_ know that it was by far his favorite look on Steve. Ever.

“Steeeeeve,” Tony whined, dramatically flailing his limbs and resting his chin on Steve’s broad shoulder.

“G’t’sleep,” Steve replied.

“Don’t wanna,” Tony replied. “I wanna talk to you.”

Steve blindly reached up and awkwardly patted Tony on the head. “Talk in th’mornin,’” he muttered before his breathing evened out again.

“Ugh, fine.” Tony moved off of Steve and settled on his back again, pulling the covers up to his neck. He stared up at the ceiling and waited for the gentle lull of sleep to finally come.

“I can hear y’thinking,” Steve muttered a minute later.

Tony abruptly sat up again. “You’re awake?”

“No thanks to you,” Steve grumpily replied, peering over his shoulder. “What’s up?”

“Do you remember the days when we weren’t dating?” Tony asked.

Steve gave him an incredulous look. “You mean the first twenty-eight years of my life?”

Tony rolled his eyes. “You know what I mean.”

Steve yawned. “What about it?”

“I…” It was at that moment that Tony realized he had absolutely no idea why he was keeping Steve up. Sure, he wanted to talk, but… well, it wasn’t exactly fair for him to unload all of his insecurities on Steve _now_ —

“Tony?” Steve called out, his voice laced with concern.

Tony shook his head. “Nevermind. You’re right. We can talk in the mor—”

“Hey,” Steve said softly. “What is it?”

“I don’t know,” Tony replied, feeling absolutely ridiculous. “I just… I wanted to talk with you.”

“None of that now,” Steve chided, pulling Tony into an embrace. “Stop feeling guilty. You’re up— _I’m_ up—so let’s talk.”

Tony burrowed his face in the crook of Steve’s neck. “You know I love you, right?” he murmured against Steve’s skin.

“Yeah,” Steve said fondly. “And I love you.”

“I think… Sometimes I think I’m dreaming or something,” Tony admitted. “That one day, I’m going to wake up and I’ll find out that the past three years weren’t real because it all just seems too damn good to be true.”

“Well, they were very real,” Steve assured before kissing Tony’s temple.

“I know that, but there’s still this tiny part of me that refuses to believe it,” Tony explained. “I mean, just a few years ago, I didn’t think I’d actually become _friends_ with _Captain America_.”

“A few years ago, I didn’t even know you were Iron Man,” Steve supplied.

“And a few years ago, I didn’t think I’d ever love anyone like I love you.”

“Yeah?”

Tony nodded. “I didn’t think a future with _anyone_ was in the cards for me.”

“A future?” Steve repeated. “Like… marriage?”

“Well, yeah.”

“You wanna get married?” Steve asked. 

Tony frowned. “Don’t you?”

“I never really thought about it,” he admitted.

“Really?”

“Until recently, that is,” Steve amended. 

“How recently?”

“Pretty recently.”

“What changed recently?” Tony questioned.

“I fell in love with an incredible man,” Steve answered earnestly. “The most incredible man I know.”

Tony snorted. “You must not know a lot of people,” he joked, but Steve didn’t look the least bit amused. 

“I’m serious, Tony,” Steve said.

“Right,” Tony said, trying to sound as convincing as possible.

Steve just sighed and rolled them over, trapping Tony between his body and the mattress. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Tony replied automatically.

“I love being with you, and I want to be with you forever, so…” Steve drawled, “do you want to get married?”

Tony eyed him skeptically. “Are you… You’re asking? For real? _Now_?”

Steve shrugged. “Depends on your answer.”

“You don’t have to do this just because I brought it up, Steve.”

“I’d only ever ask because I wanted to, Tony; because I want _you_ , and I want to spend the rest of my life _with_ you,” Steve replied.

Tony could feel “I pined after you for long enough. I’d have to be an idiot to say no and—wait, what are you—”

Steve leaned over the side of the bed and reached into the nightstand. He rummaged through the contents before taking out a small, black velvet box and gently nudging it into Tony’s hand.

“You really _have_ thought about this,” Tony remarked, his gaze flickering between Steve’s face and the container in his hand.

“I _was_ thinking about taking you out somewhere proper—dinner, maybe even dancing, but I think this works too,” Steve said. “Marry me?”

“Yeah, I’ll marry you.”


	2. Modern Royalty AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be a [prompt for a 3-sentence fic](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/91762939373/stevetony-modern-royalty-au-with-prince-steve)... I failed to stay at three sentences. 
> 
> Originally posted in five parts [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/129169737653/stevetony-modern-royalty-au-part-5).

There he is!" 

"It’s Tony Stark!" 

Tony’s hand freezes over the door to the bathroom and looks over his shoulder to see a hoard of reporters and photographers stampeding towards him. 

He’s barely able to let out a “what the fuck?” before he’s blinded by camera flashes. Of course, he chose _today_ to wear his Captain America boxers. 

"Mr. Stark, are you really the Prince’s long-lost lover?" 

"How did you meet the Prince?" 

"How long have you two been an item?" 

"Do we hear wedding bells in the future?" 

"Whoa, I have _no_ idea what the hell any of you are all talking about!” Tony yells, but it falls on deaf ears, because they continue to bombard him with questions. 

"Will you be moving into the castle after you graduate?" 

"What’s the hardest part about dating a Prince?”

Tony looks at them all dubiously. “Who’s dating a prince?” 

“Do the King and Queen approve of your relationship?" 

"Are there—" 

"OKAY. EVERYBODY MOVE THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY!” 

Tony gave a sigh of relief at the sight of Pepper forcing her way through the crowd. “Pepper, what—” 

Pepper ignores him, grabbing his wrist instead and pulling him through the throngs of people. 

“Mr. Stark, if you could—" 

"I _said_ : Get. The hell. Out of. My way,” Pepper seethes, and the reporter slinks away without another word. She pulls Tony into the safety of his dorm room, slamming the door shut and locking it, but they can still hear the reporters in the hallway.

"What the hell is goin’ on?” Rhodey mumbles from his bed, still half-asleep. 

“Fuck if I know!” Tony says. He turns to Pepper, who’s flipping through the channels on their television. “Pepper, now isn’t the time for TV! I’d like to know _why_ there are reporters out there taking pictures of me in my underwear—” 

"Will you just be quiet for one second and sit your ass down?” Pepper hisses. 

“Wha—”

“Just watch!” Pepper snaps.

Tony looks at the screen and sees a photo of Steve on a horse, wearing a… royal officer’s uniform? “Oh, my God.” 

“What? What’d I miss?” Rhodey asks, abruptly sitting up.

 _“Prince Steven of the Isle of Shield transferred to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology just this past year, and has managed to keep the move under wraps… until last night, that is._ ”

"Oh, my fucking God.” Tony gapes because there, on the television, is a photo of him and Steve from the night before, walking around the city. 

_”We have various sources saying that they sighted the young Prince out and about with a young man, who sources have identified as Tony Stark, a fellow junior at MIT. Tony Stark is the son of billionaire Howard Stark, CEO of Stark Industries. We have not yet received a confirmation or denial of the relationship from either the Palace or Stark Industries. Heather, do you have any thoughts on the alleged relationship between the Prince and Tony Stark?”_

“I’m dating a… Steve’s a… He’s a _prince_?!” Tony exclaims.

_"Well, I think I can say that I speak for everyone else that this is quite a shock. Not necessarily a bad one, but ever since the Prince’s engagement to Princess Margaret was broken off three years ago, the Prince has been one of the most eligible bachelors in the world. He has only been seen with a handful of different young women since the break-up, but maybe with good reason."_

_"The do look like a lovely couple, don’t they?"_

"Dude. You’re dating royalty,” Rhodey says. “This explains so much." 

"Did you know this whole time?” Tony asks Pepper. 

Pepper shakes her head. “I woke up this morning and saw the headline in the paper.” 

Tony’s still busy trying to wrap his head around the fact that he’s been dating a prince for the past five months that he doesn’t even register the ringing coming from his phone. Pepper glances at the screen before wordlessly thrusting the phone into his hand. Tony recovers enough from the shock to answer it. “H-hello?” 

“ _Oh, Tony,”_ Steve says in a rush. _“Thank God you’re there._ “ 

Tony clears throat, trying to sound as authoritative as possible. “You have got a lot of explaining to do, Rogers.” _  
_

_"I know, I know,”_ Steve says remorsefully. _“But I’d rather do it in person. I’m sending a car for you right now.”_

“A car?” Tony repeats. “Where the hell are you?" 

_"The Four Seasons.”_

“What are you doing there?" 

There’s a pause on the other end before Steve speaks again: “ _My parents are here_ ,” he explains. _"They want to meet you.”_

_~_

“Are you sure you’re all right, Mr. Stark?” the limo driver asks as escorts Tony to the Presidential Suite of the hotel. Tony thinks his name is Phil, but he isn’t positive. 

“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine,” Tony says, still pressing the ice pack to his face. 

“Perhaps it would be better if I took that before you go in to meet the King and Queen,” Phil suggests. 

“Uh, yeah. You’re probably right.” Tony reluctantly gives the man the ice pack and examines his reflection in the elevator mirror. For someone who fainted after finding out that his boyfriend was actually the prince of his home country, and then told that he was to meet the King and Queen of said home country, he looked pretty good. Rhodey and Pepper had helped him pick out the best “meet-the-in-laws” outfit that he had in his dorm closet (he’s suddenly glad that his parents insisted he bring at least three suits to college). His left eye is a little red, but not swollen, which is good.

“Your appearance is adequate,” Phil says.

“Gee, thanks,” Tony mutters, fidgeting with his shirt collar.

“I meant it as a compliment,” Phil assures. “Prince Steven was rather unkempt when I fetched him this morning.”

“I highly doubt that Steve— _Prince_ Steven,” Tony corrected himself, “has ever left the house with a single hair out of place.”

Phil chuckles in response, but doesn’t say anything for the rest of the ride up.

Tony swears his heart rate increases the closer they get to the top floor, and he’s afraid that he’s going to faint again once the doors finally slid open, but Phil just ushers him out of the elevator and practically pushes him through the foyer and into the sitting room. Phil leaves Tony there without word and shuts the door behind him.

Steve’s standing—well, _pacing_ seems more appropriate—in front of the television, dressed in a navy blue suit. An older couple is seated at the two arm chairs opposite the television, both dressed in impeccable clothes. 

Steve finally looks up and meets Tony’s gaze, and Tony actually sees the tension leave his body.

“Tony,” Steve says, grinning from ear to ear. That seems to get the King and Queen’s attention because they abruptly look away from the television and stand. Steve approaches Tony and kisses his cheek. “I want you to meet my mother and father.”

Tony nods dumbly and allows Steve to lead him by the hand.

“Mother, Father, this is Anthony Stark,” Steve introduces him.

“Your majesty,” Tony greets whilst bowing his head. He doesn’t actually know the guidelines for meeting a King and Queen, but he hopes he isn’t making a huge fool of himself.

Suddenly, the King laughs, and Tony wants to crawl into a hole and die.

“Dear, there is no need for such formality,” the Queen says, her voice sweet like honey. She places her hands on Tony’s shoulders and smiles at him. “Any friend of our son’s is a friend of ours. You may call me ‘Sarah.’”

“And you can call me ‘Joseph,’” the King adds. “Stephen has told us so much about you. It is nice to finally put a face to the name,” he says, and it feels like a weight is lifted off Tony’s shoulders.

“Steve has told me a lot about you as well, although I am sad to say that he left out a few details,” Tony says, earning him another laugh from Joseph. 

“Why, Stephen, you failed to mention how utterly charming your friend is,” Sarah says to her son.

Steve blushes, and Tony resists the urge to pinch his cheeks–he still needs time to guage what kind of PDA would be appropriate. 

“I hope you brought an appetite,” Joseph says to Tony. “The six of us have a lunch reservation in a half-hour.”

Tony turns to Steve for clarification, but he looks just as confused as Tony is.

“Six, father?” Steve inquires.

Joseph nods. “Your mother and I took the liberty of inviting the Starks.” 

~ 

“Why is this my life?” Tony whines after Joseph leaves the room. “I just _had_ to fall in love with _you_ —”

Steve frowns. “Hey—”

Tony flops down onto the couch and rolls his eyes at him. “Oh, calm down, you know I didn’t mean it like that.”

Steve takes a seat next to Tony, who just repositions himself so he can rest his head in Steve’s lap. 

Tony makes a sound of contentment when Steve starts running his fingers through his hair.

“I was going to tell you,” Steve says.

“It’s fine,” Tony assures. “I can understand why you wouldn’t want everyone to know about something like _this_. I mean, I’m lucky my dad fucks up enough that no one bothers paying any attention to me.”

“I care about you,” Steve says earnestly.

“Oh, my _God_ ,” Tony sits up and looks at him disbelievingly. “How are you even _real_?” 

“I’m just telling you the truth.”

“I know you are. It’s just… Stuff like this isn’t supposed to happen to me.”

“How do you mean?”

“You’re a _prince_ , Steve. You’re going to rule your own country one day and everyone’s going to adore you even more than they do now. Me? I’m just the fucked up kid that my womanizing father and alcoholic mother had just so my father’s legacy could be handed down to someone,” Tony explains. “I’m a spoiled brat with a borderline drinking problem who doesn’t know when to shut up. I’m practically destined for the same fucked up fate as my parents.”

“You’re not a brat,” Steve reproves. 

“Well, not _anymore_ , since _someone_ I know inspired me to become a _better person_ ,” Tony says, crinkling his nose in disgust.

Steve laughs. “What a hardship.”

“Tell me about it.”

“What happened to your eye?”

“Uh… I _may_ have fainted and hit my head on my desk,” Tony replies. “It’s fine, though. I promise.”

“You’re sure.”

“Positive.”

Steve touches their foreheads together. “I do love you, y’know? The last thing I want is for this to change anything between us.”

“Well, you might think differently after you meet my parents.”

“I’m dating _you_ , Tony,” Steve reminds him. “Not them.” 

“I’m really not gonna be able to get rid of you, am I?” Tony jokes.

“Never,” Steve agrees before closing the distance between them and capturing his lips in a kiss, but they abruptly pull away when they hear the door open.

“As utterly adorable as you two look,” Sarah says from the doorway, “I’m afraid we are going to be late for our reservations if we don’t head over there now.”

“Right. Of course, mother,” Steve says, licking his lips. He stands up and makes his way to the door. “I’ll go get our coats,” he adds before slipping out of the room.

Tony gets up from the couch and smooths the wrinkles out of his suit jacket, very aware of Sarah’s intense gaze. “I’m sorry if that was inappropriate or—”

To Tony’s shock, the older woman actually laughs. “Oh, that is far from the worst I have caught my son doing, dear.”

“Oh?” Tony says, genuinely curious. “He does this a lot?”

“Often enough,” Sarah confirms. “I remember the first time I caught him stumbling out of the coatroom with one of his childhood friends.”

“The coatroom?”

“Yes. It was the night of my husband’s fiftieth birthday. The festivities were just beginning, and there he is, looking guilty as ever with the largest lovebite on his neck that I have ever seen. He likes to think he’s quite the sneak, but that boy cannot lie to save his life—” 

“What are you two talking about?” Steve asks when he returns.

“Sarah here was just telling me about your father’s fiftieth birthday,” Tony says coolly, making Steve blush.

“W-well, would you look at the time!” Steve stammers. “We’re going to be late if we don’t get moving—”

“There was also that time that I caught him in the stables with that Italian supermodel—”

“ _Mother_!” 

~

“Well, that went about as well as I thought it would,” Tony says when they’re in Steve’s hotel room—they had wanted to go back to school, but realized it was a lost cause when they saw the dozens ofreporters waiting outside their dormitory.

“It wasn’t that bad,” Steve assures, leaning against the door.

Tony looks at him incredulously. “Were we not sitting at the same table?”

Steve shrugs. “It could’ve gone worse.”

“Yeah, well, it could’ve gone _better_ ,” Tony counters as he tosses his jacket aside.

“Well, all we can do is hope the _next_ one goes better.”

“I can’t believe your parents are even _letting_ you continue to date me after meeting my family.”

“I already told you: it’s you I’m dating, not them.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Tony says. “Although, I’ve gotta say they took the news pretty well.”

“They were pretty calm for finding out your boyfriend is next in line to inherit a country—” 

“Oh, no. I meant the whole ‘your son is gay’ thing.”

Steve’s fingers freeze where they’re undoing his tie. “They didn’t—”

“I’ve been away at boarding school since I was eight,” Tony informs. He takes a seat in the middle of the king-sized bed. “I went straight to college after that, and I couldn’t exactly slip in the fact that I like cock into a two minute phone conversation.”

“Tony—”

“Nope, not happening,” he interrupts. “We are not talking about this right now.”

Steve looks like he wants to argue, but acquiesces anyway. “What do you want to talk about, then?”

Tony ponders for a moment before he grins, wickedly . “You could tell me that story that Sarah never got to finish.” 

Steve blushes. “Shut up, Tony.”

“I didn’t realize you were such a Casanova—” 

“ _Tony_ ,” Steve warns, but Tony ignores him. 

“No, really. I mean, I knew I wasn’t your first, but to hear it from your _mother_ —”

“I should’ve known better than to let you meet my parents,” Steve mutters under his breath as he toes off his shoes.

“I like them.”

“I’m glad.”

Tony reaches for Steve’s hand and pulls him down onto the bed with him. “Do they like me?”

“I don’t doubt it.” Steve positions himself between Tony’s legs and pins Tony’s hands above his head—a move that would make Tony feel overpowered were it anyone else, but with Steve, he feels… _protected_.

“What’s on your mind?”

“You aren’t… bothered by it, are you?” Steve asks, avoiding Tony’s gaze.

“By what?”

“The uh, Italian supermodel…” 

Tony rolls his eyes. “If you really think I’d be bothered by the fact that you bedded half of the Victoria’s Secret angels before we met, Rogers, then you really don’t know me at all.” 

“You really don’t care about my… past?”

“You’re smart, good looking, and charming as hell. I knew there was a good chance that you had… gotten around—”

“But you—”

“I have no regrets about you being my first,” Tony says, truthfully, “Even if you _are_ a slut.”

The other man chuckles. “You’re such a romantic.”

Tony grins. “You love it.”

“I do.” Steve presses a kiss to his nose. “I love everything about you.” 

~

Tony considers himself lucky that he and Steve were outed right before winter break, because he doesn’t know if he could’ve endured another day of being gawked at by his classmates and professors.

At the end of Steve’s parents’ visit—and their parents’ disastrous meeting—Joe and Sarah invite Tony to spend the holiday back in their country. 

Tony doesn’t even think twice before accepting because the last thing he needs is another Christmas spent alone in his house.

Tony’s never done the whole meet-your-boyfriend’s-parents thing for two reasons: 1) he hasn’t even done the meet-your-best-friend’s-parents thing and 2) he’s never been in a relationship…

So of all of the things he had expected out of an actual _stay_ with the King and Queen of the Isle of Shield, a ball held in his honor certainly isn’t one of them.

“So you’re the flavor of the month, huh?”

Tony turns around and finds himself face to face with a made-up blonde in a dress so tight that it could only be described as a second skin.

But as bad of a vibe as the woman gives off, Tony can’t deny her beauty.

“Is that an appropriate dress to be wearing to a ball?” Tony asks coolly. He has the tendency to fidget when under pressure, so he busies himself by twirling the olives in his martini. 

The woman’s gaze flickers to the drink in his hand. “Are you even old enough to drink that?”

“As a matter of fact, I am.” She didn’t have to know that Tony had only turned twenty-one a month prior. Besides, Tony’s pretty sure that the drinking age in Steve’s country is lower than that in the states.

Steve’s _country_.

Man, his life is weird.

The woman’s eyes narrow. “You’re awfully comfortable for being here—What? Two weeks?”

“And you’re being awfully rude to the royal family’s guest,” another woman—a brunette in a stunning red silk gown—cuts in. There’s an air of elegance around her that Tony is both intimidated and captivated by. “It’s nice to see you again, Marie.”

“Lady Margaret,” the blonde— _Marie_ —says tightly. “Always a pleasure.” 

“Likewise,” the other woman replies curtly, and it’s that moment that Tony decides he likes her. “Marie, would you mind leaving us? I’ve been meaning to speak with Anthony. Alone.”

Marie nods dumbly. “Of course,” she says, bowing her head. “You won’t last,” she sneers at Tony. “None of them ever do.”

“She’s… pleasant,” Tony says as the blonde walks away.

“She’s just bitter that Steve never had an interest in her.” Margaret flashes him a smile so beautiful that it makes Tony question his sexual orientation (again). “I’m Lady Margaret, but you can call me ‘Peggy.’”

Tony freezes. “Peggy? You… You’re Steve’s—”

“Childhood best friend?” Peggy supplies, a playful smile on her lips. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Tony.”

“You’ve heard about me?” 

She laughs, a beautiful, melodic sound that echoes down the hallway. “It’s kind of difficult not to,” she says.

Tony smiles nervously. “Well, yeah… The media’s pretty crazy at times…”

Peggy shakes her head. “I mean, it’s very hard not to hear about you from _Steve_ ,” she corrects. “Ever since he went off to school, you are all he talks about.”

“Really?”

“Why does that come as a surprise to you?” she asks.

“I…” Tony’s at a loss for words. “It’s just… I’m just… _me_. He’s… He’s amazing, and you’re amazing, and I didn’t realize he talked _about_ me… to… to you.” He chides himself for his lack of tact. “I—I mean you guys were…”

“Steve and I are very close friends,” Peggy says wistfully. “Some would even say ‘too close.’ It’s probably why things didn’t work out between us.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean…”

“It’s fine. Water under the bridge,” she assures. “It didn’t take very long for both of us to realize we were making a mistake. He’s happier now than he could have ever been with me.”

“Are _you_ happy?” Tony asks. 

Peggy looks at him quizzically. “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever been asked that question.”

Tony keeps quiet. 

“I’m happy that he’s happy,” she answers a moment later. “But I will admit that I’m just a little jealous he was able to his special someone so soon.”

Tony can’t help the blush that spreads across his cheeks.

Peggy smiles at him knowingly. “You’re worried, aren’t you?”

“Worried? Why would I be worried?” Tony lies.

“I’m sure you’re well aware by now that Steve has had his fair share of lovers… but I’ve seen the way he looks at you, Tony,” she says. “He’s never looked at _anyone_ the way he looks at you.” 

Tony’s breath catches at the admission. “What if I’m not good enough for him?” he whispers. He startles when Peggy gently places a hand on his shoulder.

“Trust me, Tony,” she says sincerely. “If anything, _Steve_ is the one that’s lucky enough to have you.” 


	3. cupcakes (MCU)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony Stark likes cupcakes. 
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/87552081958/if-youre-still-taking-prompts-how-about).

See, it’s a well-known fact that Tony Stark has a sweet tooth.

Steve had learned very early on that the three most efficient ways of getting Tony to do pretty much _anything_ are sex, coffee, and dessert.

Between breakfasts consisting of waffles or pancakes slathered in copious amounts of syrup, and doughnuts for lunch, and dinners always followed by some sort of dessert (and usually post-dessert _dessert_ ), Steve is rather dumbfounded that the man hasn’t exhibited signs of diabetes yet.

A few days after taking up residency at the tower, Steve had found a box of doughnuts in the cabinet beneath the sink. A week after that, he found candy wrappers in between the couch cushions, and half of a chocolate cake with his name on it (literally, on a post-it in obnoxious lettering) in the fridge. The blond was also surprised to find out that Tony liked his coffee light and sweet, and not black as he had originally thought.

The day Steve actually became legitimately concerned for the man’s health was after Dr. Doom had tried the whole world domination thing again. The army of Doombots was three times the size as usual, and even with the help of the Fantastic Four, it took a good seven hours to finally get rid of every single one of them.

When the team re-convened in the middle of all of the wreckage, Tony had opened up a compartment in his armor and pulled out a bag of licorice.

_Licorice._

Tony Stark had a hidden compartment in his advanced, weaponized suit of armor for _snacks_.

So Steve may have staged a little intervention later that night, politely requesting that Tony go see a doctor to make sure that the excessive amounts of sugar weren’t affecting his body. Tony agreed, but not without a dramatic sigh and roll of his eyes. The next afternoon, he had walked into the kitchen with a very smug look on his face, and slapped a piece of paper in front of Steve declaring that he had a clean bill of health.

However, after that stunt, Steve had started seeing less sugary items hidden around the the tower, and they were practically nonexistent after he and Tony started dating. Yes, Tony still ate sweets like it was his job, but the fact he felt less compelled to hoard them put Steve a little more at ease.

It wasn’t until three months into dating that Steve realized Tony’s true weakness.

Cupcakes.

Fancy, intricately decorated, and overpriced _cupcakes_.

Tony just couldn’t resist walking into a store and buying a dozen red velvet cupcakes from Sprinkles, or a box of vanilla buttercreams from Magnolia Bakery. Hell, he had even sent Happy on the equivalent of late-night Tampax runs for some of the sugary, baked goods.

Steve hasn’t minded though, even if it was a little ridiculous. After all, every one had a weird quirk or two.

But even supersoldiers eventually run out of patience, and Steve finally draws the line after Tony momentarily leaves the room after a couple of rounds in the sack, only to come back with a half-full box of double-chocolate cupcakes.

“If you had to choose between me or cupcakes, what would you choose?” Steve asks, watching Tony remove the paper liner of one of the baked goods.

Tony pouts. “That isn’t fair, Steve. That’s like asking me who my favorite child is.”

Steve looks unimpressed. “You’re seriously telling me that you can’t choose between your loving, doting, supersoldier boyfriend, or a mound of baked flour and sugar?”

“They’re _double chocolate_ ,” Tony responds, as if that makes all the difference, and then proceeds to eat half of the concoction in one go.

Steve wrinkles his nose. “You’re like a four-year-old.”

"That would make you the creeper of the century then, wouldn’t it?” Tony says, licking frosting off of his fingers. He goes to finish off the rest of the cupcake but freezes when an idea strikes him. “What about my super hot and super dorky boyfriend covered in chocolate frosting? Is that an option?”

Steve doesn’t even have a chance to respond before Tony smears the remains of the cupcake all over his face and body.

“Was that really necessary?”

Tony eyes him and nods. “Mmm very.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

Tony straddles the other man’s lap and licks a stripe of frosting off of his cheek. “And you are absolutely delicious.”

“Ridiculous,” Steve repeats, trying to wipe off some of the frosting on his face.

“You love it,” Tony counters, taking Steve’s hand and sucking the frosting off of his fingers. “And I love you,” he adds, kissing his nose.

“But not as much as you love cupcakes,” Steve remarks as he watches his boyfriend lick his hand clean. He feels the familiar pull of arousal low in his belly. 

“I think could be swayed.”


	4. Sugar Daddy!Steve & Broke Student!Tony AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So this AU snowballed into a big _thing_ so the following is just a small fraction of the content that was created by me, onemuseleft/nightwalker, pensversswords, and unsentpromises. Some is in fic form, some is just rambling... I'm hoping to turn this into an actual full-fledged fic one day. :) 
> 
> Master post of this AU can be found [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/136427216598/sugar-daddysteve-college-studenttony-au)!

“Steve, is there any particular reason you’ve been frequenting that quaint little café around the corner?”

“It’s been hectic lately, Peg. I just needed my caffeine fix.”

“You have a café— _multiple cafés_ —here. In _your_ tower,” Peggy points out. “You made sure of that personally.”

Steve shrugs. “Maybe I just want a change of scenery.”

“Or maybe you’re totally gone for that brunet who works behind the counter,” Bucky says as he walks through the door with a stack of folders in hand and a cup of coffee in the other.

“I am _not_ —”

“Oh, that makes a lot more sense then,” Peggy says mischievously. “What’s she like? Or he?”

“He’s young,” Bucky supplies. “Good looking, smart, and _way_ out of Steve’s league.” 

~

“So are you gonna ask Rogers out or what?”

“Or what,” Tony replies while dutifully cleaning the espresso machine.

“Very funny,” Rhodey says, not amused in the slightest. “C’mon, Tones. He’s _obviously_ into you.”

“No, he’s not.”

“Our tips have increased by over 500% ever since he started coming here,” Pepper points out.

“That doesn’t mean he likes _me_. Maybe he really likes our coffee,” Tony lamely suggests. 

“You’re the only one who ever actually talks to him,” Rhodey reasons. “We’ve seen the way he looks at you.”

Tony rolls his eyes. “He looks at everyone like that.”

“And how do you know this?”

“I read the news,” Tony mumbles.

Pepper scoffs. “You watch TMZ.”

“It’s still news!”

~

Rhodey doesn’t find out about Steve until he wakes up one Saturday morning and finds one of those celebrity gossip shows talking about “Steve Rogers’ new boytoy.” And Rhodey is still a little drunk from the night before, so he thinks it’ll be a good laugh, but when he sees grainy photos of Steve Rogers and a boy who suspiciously looks like Tony walking out of a restaurant a couple blocks from campus, he’s left staring at the television in shock until Tony gets home half an hour later. 

“So… where were you?” 

Tony starts, obviously surprised that Rhodey is awake, which is actually ridiculous because it’s well past noon, and Rhodey’s been known to go to his 8am classes after being out all night with his fraternity brothers.

“I was at the library,” Tony replies, and it comes out more as a question than a statement. 

Rhodey gives him an incredulous look. “You went to the library on a Saturday morning?”

“Yeah, well, y’know I have that huge project due.”

“At the end of the year.”

“Right, but I thought I’d try to… finish it early?” Tony offers lamely, and it’s so pathetic Rhodey considers almost giving him a pass just because of that.

“When were you going to tell me that you’re dating _Steve Rogers_?” Rhodey asks.

“Um…”

“Um? Really? That’s the best you can give me?”

“I _was_ going to tell you, Rhodey, I swear—”

“When? Were you going to tell me 3 years from now with a wedding invitation?” Rhodey grabs the remote and unmutes the television.

_“Steve Rogers is notorious for stepping out with Hollywood’s hottest celebrities, but it seems no one has any clue who this new man is. A source says he may be a student at MIT, but when, where and how they met is still unknown.”_

Rhodey mutes the television again and looks at Tony pointedly. “Do you have any idea how it feels to find out that my best friend has been dating someone through a gossip talk show?”

Tony sighs and slumps down to the ground. “I’m sorry. I just… I didn’t want to tell anyone yet. This thing is still new and I have no idea where it’s going, and—”

“Steve Rogers, though? Really? How did that even _happen_?”

“It just did!” Tony says. “He was here for that talk, remember? I walked with him to the lecture hall beforehand and then after he asked me to dinner.”

Rhodey gawks. “That talk happened over two months ago!”

“I know. I’m really sorry I didn’t tell you—”

“So all those times you said you were going to the library or to some engineering society thing? That new cell phone you got, your new laptop,new _clothes_? That was all _him_?”

“Yes, but I didn’t ask for the stuff.”

“So what? He just gave it to you? Tony, he’s…”

Tony narrows his eyes. “He’s _what_ , Rhodey?”

“It’s like he’s trying to _buy_ you or something! Is he making you do anything you don’t want to?”

“Of course not!” Tony says indignantly.

“You know you can tell me anything, Tony—”

“I _know_ that! He isn’t making me do anything. I didn’t even _want_ any of the stuff; he just gave it to me.”

“He’s a well-known playboy,” Rhodey reasons, “and a businessman. He knows how to get exactly what he wants—”

“He’s not like that,” Tony defends. “He isn’t… He’s nothing like the papers make him out to be. He’s so thoughtful and considerate, and intelligent, and just… cares about others so much and—”

And Rhodey’s known Tony for going on four years now, but he’s never seen the other man quite like this. As if—

“Are you in love him?”

“Yes. No?” Tony groans. “I don’t know.”

“You really care about him though?”

Tony nods. “I’ve never felt like this about anyone before, Rhodey. I… I really like him, and I wanna be with him, and—”

“Fine.”

“Fine?”

“If he’s half the man you say he is, then I suppose he’ll do,” Rhodey says reluctantly. “But I wanna meet him, and I’m sure Pepper will want to as well. If this guy thinks he can date my best friend without even properly introducing himself to me, then he’s got another thing coming.” 

~

Tony is terrified of Bucky. Sure, the man’s cool and all, and Tony’s seen firsthand what the CFO can do in a boardroom and how he can charm the press just as easily, if not more-so, than Steve. Bucky’s been by Steve’s side longer than Peggy, Natasha _or_ Sam, and so Tony’s surprised when the latter three give him the “shovel talk” before Bucky does. 

Tony had first met Bucky after his and Steve’s third date had been interrupted by some manufacturing emergency, and Bucky had shown up on the roof of the restaurant in a _helicopter_. 

Talk about asserting one’s power. 

Tony had tagged along because it was a Friday night and he had nothing better to do, but Bucky had side-eyed him the entire time. At one point, Tony had heard him mutter something like: “What the hell are you doing with a _kid_ , Steve?” 

Steve, of course, simply replied with: “I like him. He likes me. He’s fun, and we want to see where this goes.” 

Bucky shot a nervous glance in Tony’s direction. “He isn’t… What does he want from you?” 

“He doesn’t want anything from me,” Steve snapped. “Now, give me a tablet or something so I can try fixing this mess.” 

It’s the morning after Tony and Steve’s six-month anniversary when Tony finds himself in the kitchen making brunch for him and Steve. The celebrations the night before had been nothing short of _wonderful_ , but Tony had wanted to surprise Steve with a nice home-cooked meal after he returned from his early morning meeting, 

Tony’s in the middle of pouring some more pancake batter on the griddle when Bucky shows up out of fucking _nowhere._

Tony’s positive the man was a ninja in some past life. 

Or maybe Bucky was one now: what does he know? 

“Coffee?” Tony offers as he puts the bowl full of batter on the counter and lowers the heat of the griddle–the tension in Bucky’s face and shoulders gives Tony the feeling that the man is here for business. 

Bucky wordlessly nods as he takes a seat on one of the barstools.

Tony turns his back and pours two cups of coffee for them, and hands one to the other man before retreating behind the safety of the kitchen island. He tries not think about the absurdity of the scene: of Bucky dressed up and ready for work, and Tony cooking barefoot in _Steve’s_ kitchen like he _belongs_ there. 

He likes to think he does. 

Tony takes in Bucky’s appearance and notices just how much of a contrast his neatly styled hair and impeccable D&G suit are to Tony’s own bedhead and pajamas. 

Tony tries taking a sip of the caffeinated drink in his hand and almost burns his mouth in the process–Bucky,of course, takes a huge gulp without flinching at the scalding temperature. 

Another way to assert his power over Tony, maybe. 

“So you’ve been dating Steve for a while now, huh?” Bucky says with a gaze so intense that it takes all of Tony’s willpower not to fidget. 

“Six months. You know that,” Tony says with a frown. 

“Yeah, I do. Steve wouldn’t shut up about the plans he made for you for _weeks_ ,” Bucky adds, a small smile on his lips. It disappears just as quickly as it came. 

“Why are you here?” Tony asks. “I thought you’d still be downstairs with Steve and Peggy.” 

“We finished the financials earlier than expected, so I ducked out,” Bucky informs. “I thought this would be a good opportunity to talk. To you,” he adds. 

Tony swallows. “What, like a shovel talk?” he remarks, keeping his tone as light as possible. The last thing he wants to do is give Bucky any indication of how much the man intimidates him. “If I hurt him in any way, you’ll kill me, right? Well, don’t worry because Peggy, Natasha, Sam and even _Fury_ already gave me lectures. Months ago, actually.” He’s perfectly aware of the power and influence Steve’s friends have–how they could all make Tony disappear without a trace in five seconds flat. 

“I know you aren’t going to hurt him.” 

Tony almost drops his mug. “You do?” 

Bucky sighs and leans back in his chair. “I’ll admit I had my… _reservations_ before.” 

“You continuously tried setting Steve up with people for the first month we were dating,” Tony says dryly. He would’ve been more annoyed, but he knows how he and Steve look–they aren’t exactly a conventional couple, not when Steve’s the head of a multi-billion dollar technology company and Tony’s a broke college student. 

“You aren’t like any of the people Steve has ever dated,” Bucky says. “I was convinced for the longest time that you were after something–his money, fame, whatever. Even after the others warmed up to you, I was still convinced that you weren’t good enough for him.” 

Tony understands, because of _course_ he does–Bucky and Steve had been best friends since before Tony was _born_. “You’re just trying to look out for him.” 

“I know he has somewhat of a… reputation,” Bucky says, “but the man’s gotten his heart broken more times than I could count. I’ve seen him at his best, Tony, but I’ve also seen him at his worst, and if there’s a way I can prevent the worst, then you can be damn well sure I’m going to try.” 

Tony nods wordlessly, but he wonders what Bucky thinks he brings out in Steve. 

“I never expected he’d find anyone like you.” 

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” Tony can’t help but ask. 

“You challenge him,” Bucky answers instead. “You aren’t afraid to speak your mind in front of him, and have never been afraid to knock him down a peg or two. Most people would fawn over him from his money and gifts alone, but you’ve never accepted a penny from him without an argument. I… There were a couple in the past who had done the same thing, but it didn’t take long for me to realize it was all just a game to get Stevie wrapped around their finger.” 

“I’d never do that,” Tony says. He isn’t stupid–he knows the kind of people that Steve used to… _associate_ with, and he’s met many of them at various functions. Just _thinking_ about how much these people had hurt Steve–how they had _betrayed_ him–made Tony’s blood boil. “You have to know by now that I would never do that.” 

“I know,” Bucky answers. 

“I’d die before I let that happen.” 

Bucky chuckles. “You don’t have to be so dramatic.” 

_It’s true_ , Tony wants to say, but bites his tongue. He’d go to the ends of the universe for Steve without a second thought. 

“I wanted to apologize.” 

“Apologize?” Tony repeats. “What for?” 

Bucky leans forward and rests his elbows on the counter. “You’re a good person, Tony, and you’re good _for_ him. I’m sorry for ever thinking that you weren’t.” 

Tony opens his mouth to say something, but the words die in his throat. 

“Steve has been waiting a long time for someone like you,” Bucky continues. "I didn’t realize it then, but you’re exactly what he needs, and for some reason, he seems good for you too.”

“He’s amazing.” Tony ducks his head. “I don’t know what I ever did to deserve him.” 

"I don’t know what Steve ever did to luck out and get _you_ ,” Bucky says seriously. “And I’ll be damned if he fucks this up.” 

Tony regards him carefully. “What are you saying?” 

Bucky straightens his back and takes a another sip from his mug. "What I’m saying is: Steve would have to be a fucking _moron_ to let you go. If he ever hurts you, I will not hesitate to kill him.” 

~

Tony’s known about Steve Rogers for the majority of the 21 years he’s been alive. 

Considering the fact that Steve became a billionaire and the CEO of one of the fastest-growing tech companies at the age of 22, it was kind of hard not to hear about him on the news, see his name in the papers about some huge breakthrough in green technology, or see his face on the tabloids after being spotted with yet another new person on his arm. 

Tony’s 15 when Steve’s first sex tape leaks on the internet, and he only knows this because he remembers noticing a tabloid with the unoriginal headline, “Rogers Sex Tape Scandal!” while trying to buy beer with a fake ID. The second thing he notices is how _gorgeous_ Steve is, even though the picture is somewhat blurry from being taken so far away.

It’s pretty ridiculous actually, because in the photo, Steve is wearing an open flannel button-down over a ratty band t-shirt, shorts, flip flops, and a backwards hat—and he looks like the guys that make fun of Tony in his classes (the ones who drive their new Audis to school and go drinking at their parents’ beach houses in the Hamptons)—so he reminds Tony of the guys he _can’t stand_ , but he isn’t blind by any means, so he can understand why someone who looks like _that_ would be such a hot topic of conversation in celebrity news.

The second time Tony sees Steve on a cover of a magazine is about a year after that, but this one is staged, and Steve is [dressed to the nines](http://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/120925325853/directorofshield-nick-fury-beaglebitch-yes) in a charcoal gray suit.

Let’s just say Tony’s arm gets quite a work out that night.

So four months into Tony and Steve’s relationship—two months after their public confirmation of their relationship, and a month after their first outing together—Peggy decides it would be good for Steve to do an interview so other people can get a small glimpse of this “softer” side of Steve Rogers.

He knows it’s irrational, but Tony still feels a tiny pang of jealousy when he hears her say that.

He takes pride in knowing that he’s one of a _very_ select group of people who know that side of Steve— _really_ know it.

Peggy schedules an interview with Vanity Fair at Steve’s six-bedroom-eight-bathroom “cabin” in Colorado. Tony tags along because he hasn’t seen Steve in almost a week and he figures at least being in the same house with Steve is better than not seeing him at all.

The interviewer asks Tony if he’d like to answer questions too, but Tony declines as politely as he can and gets back to doing his own work—he knows he’ll probably have to do these things at some point, but he isn’t ready. Not yet.

Steve talks to the reporter for almost two hours, and when they shake hands, Tony thinks they’re finally done, but then Steve apologetically reminds Tony of the cover photoshoot.

…and Tony’s reminded of that magazine cover he saw at the drug store over five years ago.

Tony’s breath catches when Steve steps out of his bedroom in a form-fitting navy blue suit fifteen minutes later, but the moment is short-lived because the photographer and make-up artists immediately swarm him.

Still, Tony sits back and watches as Steve’s hair and face are touched up before being shoved in front of the camera.

The thing is, the entire thing is absolutely ridiculous. They’re making Steve get into unnatural poses and forcing him to make these absurd facial expressions, and Tony would normally be very amused by the situation, but he’s too busy being super turned on by the image of Steve smoldering at a camera in a suit that costs more than his college tuition. 

The next three hours is excruciating, but the second the last crew member walks out the door, Tony crowds Steve against the wall and kisses him until they can’t breathe. When they pull apart, Tony realizes he’s left creases in Steve’s jacket from where he had been gripping it too hard, and normally, he’d be apologetic about it, but after seeing the look of pure _lust_ in Steve’s eyes, he finds it very hard to care.

When Steve gets the proofs of the photoshoot a few weeks later, Tony takes his favorite—the one where Steve’s jacket is open and his tie is undone and he’s making _bedroom eyes_ at the camera—and he sets it as his phone background.

Steve sets his background to a candid of a half-naked Tony in retaliation. 

~

“Do you really have to go all the way to Japan?” Tony is most definitely not whining. Nope. He is a grown man that most definitely does not whine.

He may still be capable of moping.

Steve chuckles as he rifles through his closet for a tie—and Tony still can’t believe that he’s dating someone who has an entire _closet_ solely dedicated to _ties_. “You know I do,” Steve says. 

“Yeah… doesn’t mean I have to like it,” Tony grumbles. He watches as Steve picks out a sleek, gray tie that goes wonderfully with his blue shirt–his blue shirt that clings to every dip and curve of his body–and it’s absolutely _obscene_ that someone who’s so married to his job could look so _good_.

Tony pushes himself off the bed and takes the few steps over to where Steve is standing. He playfully swats Steve’s hands away from the tie and sets to finishing up the knot himself. He takes a moment longer than necessary to run his fingers over the smooth silk before taking a step back and surveying his work.

“Good?” Steve asks. 

Tony rolls his eyes because of _course_ Steve looks good—he _always_ looks good. “Yeah, handsome,” he says with a grin. “You look good.”

Steve gives him a smile that mirrors his own before closing the distance between them. He gently tilts Tony’s head before slotting their mouths together in a kiss.

Tony’s hands instinctively move up and clutch at Steve’s shoulders bringing him impossibly closer. He feels the vibrations of Steve’s laugh course through his body and Tony can’t imagine a day without having this, let _two whole weeks_.

He has no idea how Steve has been able to wedge a permanent place in Tony’s life in the span of three months, but he has, and it’s as thrilling as it is terrifying. Tony’s relationship experience prior to Steve was basically nonexistent, and Steve’s… well, it was safe to say that Steve was much better versed in the art of romance, but Steve never minded.

Tony hadn’t planned on starting up with someone so late in the school year, let alone with a gorgeous, billionaire CEO, but he did. Tony’s been independent for most of his life, so he hadn’t planned on being so… well, _clingy_ either, but that happened too. Tony’s never been so dependent on anyone—never in his life had he ever felt the need to just be _with_ someone. Tony feels like he should be pissed at Steve for basically turning his whole life upside-down, but he can’t find it in himself to care. 

“I’ll miss you,” Tony says when they part for air.

Steve smiles and kisses him again. “I’ll miss you, too,” he says fondly.

“Yeah?”

“Of course,” Steve assures. “But I’ll be back soon enough.”

~

Who says "I love you" first? 

Unofficially, it’s Steve, who whispers it to Tony in the very early hours of the morning while the man is still deep asleep. It happens about two months into their relationship. Steve knows that getting into a relationship with someone like him isn’t easy, let alone for a senior at MIT… so he decides to keep it to himself, instead choosing for the “right” moment to say it. The very last thing he wants to do is overwhelm Tony so much that he decides to leave. 

Officially, it’s Tony, who says it a few weeks after Steve does. He’s sitting in Steve’s kitchen, working on his project and waiting for Steve to get back from a week long business trip. It’s almost midnight when he finally hears the elevator doors slide open to the penthouse, and a jetlagged Steve drags his suitcase out into the living room. 

It wasn’t until Steve went away that Tony realized how much he had come to depend on Steve in the few months they were together–and no, he wasn’t talking financially, but rather just… well, Steve’s presence. Tony loved being around him; he loved getting phone calls and text messages from him; loved waking up with him and loved falling asleep in his arms every night. 

Tony loved Steve. 

So when Steve flew to Japan, and Tony went from seeing him every day to only being able to talk to him on the phone for a total of 5 minutes and 49 seconds for the entire duration of Steve’s trip, Tony didn’t know what to do with himself. Steve at least had an entire itinerary as a distraction, but Tony could only focus on his schoolwork for so long. Rhodey and Pepper had tried taking him out to the bars, but that only ended in Tony sending dozens of drunk texts to Steve about how much he missed him and how sexually frustrated he was (2 minutes and 17 seconds of the aforementioned time on the phone _may or may not_ have been attributed to Steve briefly walking out of a meeting just to help Tony bring himself off). 

It’s obvious that Steve’s exhausted from the way he’s dragging his own feet: his suit is rumpled from sitting on the plane, there are circles under his eyes, and Tony thinks he may even look a little thinner (Steve can have the appetite of twenty men, but he often forgets to eat on very busy work days). 

Tony’s heart aches a little because he knows Steve works extremely hard, but he still has never seen Steve look so tired or worn down. When Tony finally makes his presence known, the hard lines on Steve’s face immediately disappear, and he practically lights up when they make eye contact. 

Steve’s mouth curves into a smile–a smile, Tony’s learned, that is only reserved for him–and the fact that Steve can still be so happy to see Tony after a terrible week and just look so damn _beautiful_ makes Tony’s heart do somersaults in his chest. 

Steve drops his bags, and Tony practically runs into his open arms, relishing the feel of being surrounded by _Steve_ because he’s missed this–missed _Steve_ –more than he thought was humanly possible. 

“I missed you,” Steve says, kissing Tony’s hair. 

“I love you,” Tony says in response, and he feels Steve hug him tighter. “I really, _really_ love you, Steve.” Tony’s beyond frustrated that those three words can’t even scratch the surface of the depth of his feelings for the man in front of him, but it’s a start. He pulls back far enough to plant a kiss on Steve’s lips. “I love you,” he says again when they part, and the smile Steve gives him in return is _blinding_. 

~

Tony knew from the beginning that getting romantically involved with a celebrity was going to have its drawbacks. He long-ago accepted that he probably wouldn’t be able to live the normal life he always dreamed of as a child, but after going on that first date with Steve, he realized that _any_ chances of that happening were going to be nonexistent. 

Tony was ready for the paparazzi. He was ready for the stares he’d get while walking down the street, and the murmurs of the other kids in his classes. He was ready to deal with being photographed while out in public with Steve, and ready to answer the ridiculous questions from prying reporters. 

One thing Tony wasn’t prepared for, however, was getting snatched and thrown into a moving van by a group of large men while doing some last minute gift-shopping for Steve’s birthday. 

Tony’s watched plenty of movies, so when he comes to, he’s expecting to find himself to be tied down to a chair in some abandoned warehouse in the middle of bumblefuck nowhere. 

He’s surprised to find himself in a decent hotel room with the television playing _The Price Is Right_ in the background.

Of course, he was still tied to a chair, and he wasn’t a particularly huge fan of the gun being pointed at his head, but luckily, the entire situation was over within another few hours.

The kidnappers had given Steve an account wire some money to, and while the police weren’t able to use that to trace the owner of the account, Steve’s tech guys and Tony’s _brilliant_ friends were able to find the guys within the hour.

It turned out that the police _were_ good for something though: dramatic entrances.

Between the shouting, and the bright lights, the police storming into the room, and his kidnappers crying on the floor, Tony felt like he was in the scene of a movie.

And when Steve got to the hotel—in his _helicopter_ , like what even _was_ Tony’s life?—he made the medics check him over three times, and after they assured Steve that Tony was perfectly fine, Steve still refused to leave his side and was touching every inch of Tony’s body that he could, as if making sure Tony was actually there.

So they got into Steve’s helicopter and had Steve’s pilot fly them back to the penthouse, and the ride wasn’t unpleasant necessarily, but it was obvious that Steve didn’t want to talk about it yet (which was perfectly fine with Tony). And upon arrival, Tony passed out on the couch because yes, he may have escaped any actual injury, but he learned that getting kidnapped really took a lot out of a person.

Tony woke up a good ten hours later in his and Steve’s bed, with the first rays of sunlight just starting to peak over the city skyline. He spotted Steve leaning against the railing on the balcony, wearing nothing but a t-shirt and a pair of threadbare pajama pants. Tony put on a sweatshirt and grabbed a blanket before stepping out into the chilly November air. 

“You’re going to freeze out here,” Tony said, draping the blanket over Steve’s shoulders.

Steve’s shoulders tensed, obviously not expecting the contact.

“Steve?” Tony called out softly. He placed his hand on Steve’s arm, and that’s when he realized that Steve was shaking. “Steve, babe, what’s wrong?”

“What’s _wrong_?” Steve repeated incredulously, finally looking Tony in the eye. “Jesus. Tony, you got _kidnapped_.”

“And now I’m back home safe and sound,” Tony countered.

Steve looked physically _pained_. “I don’t understand how you can even look at me right now. None of this would’ve happened if you hadn’t gotten involved with me.”

“Nothing happened to me, Steve—”

“It could still happen, Tony. I’m an easy target. I’ve had my fair share of kidnappings when I was a kid,” Steve said, surprising Tony. He remembered Steve saying something about getting kidnapped once, but _multiple_ times? 

Sure, Tony acted flippant and nonchalant in front of the police and medics, but he scared out of his mind when he was tied down with a gun to his head. 

“I wouldn’t wish those experiences upon anyone,” Steve added, quieter than before. “I couldn’t live with myself if you had gotten hurt because of me.”

“Steve, if this is you trying to break up with me, it isn’t going to work. You’re gonna be stuck with me until you get sick of me, and when that happens, I’ll just make you fall in love with me all over again.”

Steve smiled a bit at that. “Impossible. I could never get tired of you.”

“Good to know,” Tony replied. “Just… stop with this self-sacrificial bullshit, okay? I knew what I was getting into when I started dating you, and this isn’t going to scare me off.” If anything, Tony actually felt _lucky_ to have someone who cared about him so much to threaten the mayor to find him or Steve would make sure his political career was no more. 

Tony knew it was a little twisted, so he refrained from voicing that particular thought to Steve.

Instead, he wrapped his arms around Steve in a tight embrace and let the larger man sob into his worn college sweatshirt.

“I love you,” Tony said, peppering Steve’s face with kisses. “I’m not leaving you. Ever.”

“I love you too,” Steve replied. 

“Sorry I ruined your birthday.” 

“Shut up.”

The kidnapping situation sucked, and watching his boyfriend cry over him sucked even more, but at least Tony could cross “sex on the balcony” off his bucket list.


	5. "It's not the medicine."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve gets sick and takes some Asgardian medicine to get better. Tony thinks he's an adorable patient.
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/91787263063/stevetony-tony-takes-care-of-steve-when-hes-sick).

“How are you feeling?” Tony asks, placing the tray of food on the bedside table. “Are you hungry?’ 

"Not hungry,” Steve replies.

“Okay. How are you, then?”

“Mm… happy,” Steve says, words slurring together a bit. He sounds much too chipper for someone who almost died not 24-hours ago.

“That’s good,” Tony says, sitting next to him on the bed. “Means the medicine that Frigga gave us are working.”

“No, I’m _happy_ ,” Steve says again, a smile on his face. “s’not the medicine.” He makes a motion for Tony to move closer, and after some hesitation, Tony complies. “Tony.”

"Yes, Steve?" 

“ _Tonyyyyy,_ ” Steve whines.

Tony frowns. “What is it?” he asks, brushing the hair away from his eyes. ”Are you okay? Thor warned me that you might feel a little drunk, but I didn’t think it’d be this bad.” 

Steve just grabs Tony by the arms, practically pulling Tony on top of him. Steve hides his face in the material of Tony’s shirt. “M’okay now,” Steve says, hugging Tony even tighter. “‘m very happy.” 

Tony feels himself blush. “Uh… Steve, maybe you should rest? Sleep off some of those meds.” 

“Told you, s’not the medicine,” Steve says indignantly. “S’you. I’m happy ‘cause of you." 

Tony pulls back enough to look him in the eye. “Me?” 

Steve yawns but still manages to nod. He finally lets Tony go after a few moments and lays back down on the pillows. “M’always happy with you.” 

Tony looks at him incredulously. “Why me?” 

“‘cause it’s _you_ ,” Steve replies, already half-asleep. He yawns again. 

"Mhm. Okay.” Tony runs his fingers through Steve’s hair again. “Just… go to sleep, okay?" 

"Hm… feels good,” Steve says, shutting his eyes.

Tony laughs a little at the irony of the situation: in the year that the team’s been together, Tony was usually the one that got injured in battles, not Steve. “I’ll be back in a few hours to check on you, okay?”

“M’kay…”

Tony gets off the bed and goes to turn the light off, but Steve calls his name again.

“Tony?” he says, struggling to keep his eyes open. 

“Yes, Steve?”

“Thank you.” Steve gives him another sleepy smile, and yawns, yet again. “Mm... love you,” he slurs before drifting off. 

Tony watches him for a few moments before leaning forward to kiss his forehead. He turns off the light and slips into the hallway, but not before stealing another glance at the man and murmuring an “I love you, too.” 


	6. "flour child" (High School AU)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Steve/Tony, high school AU, they have to parent one of those super real fake baby dolls
> 
> Original post [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/92065034693/stevetony-high-school-au-they-have-to-parent).

“I’m glad neither of us is a girl,” Tony muses, gently rocking ‘James’ in his arms to get it to stop crying (the name was retaliation for Rhodey and Bucky’s incessant teasing the day they were assigned the project). 

Steve rests his hip against the counter. “Why’s that?” he asks. 

“Gay sex doesn’t result in babies,” Tony replies, just as the doll starts to quiet down. “Mind-blowing orgasms, yes. Screaming children, no." 

A smile tugs on the corner of Steve’s lips. “You have to admit that it usually still results in some sort of screaming though.” 

"Is there something wrong with praising my boyfriend for being so good in bed?" 

"A few things,” Steve says, “if the complaints from my neighbors are anything to go by. I’m just glad they have the decency to confront me about it directly instead of telling my mom." 

Tony frowns. “They’re still complaining? I thought gave them enough money to shut them up for the next five years.” 

Steve gapes. “You bought off my neighbors?!” 

"…maybe?”


	7. Mechanic!Tony AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Tony is a highly sought-after mechanic who can fix anything fairly quickly... except whatever Steve drags in to him (but that might be on purpose). 
> 
> Original post is [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/91770597533/hc-au-tony-is-a-highly-sought-after-mechanic-who).

“Steve!” Tony greets, wiping his grease-stained hands on a rag. "What can I do for you today?“ 

Steve looks at him dubiously. “You called me, remember? You said my bike would be ready today.” 

"Oh. Oh, uh… that. Right. Um,” Tony walks over to Steve’s bike, beckoning the other man to follow. “I’m actually waiting for my assistant to get back with the parts." 

"Are you sure she’s fixable?” Steve asks. "No offense or anything, but if you can’t fix it, I can try somewhere else.“

"I can fix it.”

“You’ve had her here for almost two weeks now,” Steve states.

Tony shrugs. “I’ve just had a lot of customers lately, y’know how it gets around this time of year… I’m behind schedule on everything.” 

“That’s funny,” Steve says, running his hand over the blue paint, “because my roommate brought her bike in here the other day for the same problem, and you had it fixed in under an hour.” He looks at Tony expectantly. 

“Uh…" 

"And when I came by the other day, you took in four cars: all of which, aren’t in this shop anymore,” Steve continues, gesturing to the empty side of the garage. 

“I don’t suppose I could make this up to you by taking you out to lunch?” Tony offers lamely. 

“Depends.” Steve sidles up to him, backing him against the work bench. “Are we going to the same place you took me to the last two times?” he asks, leaning in so their noses are almost touching. 

Tony quirks an eyebrow. “I thought you liked Thai.” 

“I do,” Steve replies, “but there are a few things that I like more." 

"Oh?” Tony asks with a smirk on his face. “Like what?" 

"Well, for one, I prefer being asked on dates in more conventional ways,” Steve says. “Not under the pretense of work." 

"Did you really come all the way out here to question my business with you?" 

"I live in Brooklyn, Tony. Spending an hour on the subway to come here isn’t really my idea of fun.”

“So you really want me to woo you with flowers and candy?" 

"I think it’d be nice to at least have the option." 

"I don’t suppose motor oil and a socket wrench would be good substitutes?" 

"You could try,” Steve says, a playful smile on his lips. 

“Okay, then, Steve Rogers, would you like to go on a date with me tonight?” Tony asks. 

“This is all so sudden, Mr. Stark,” Steve says, feigning surprise. “Lucky for you, I’m free as a bird." 

"Great.” He somehow manages to slip away from Steve’s body and the table, and starts making his way up the stairs to his apartment. “Just give me twenty minutes to shower and put on some decent clothes, and then we can take your bike." 

Steve looks at him confusedly. “Don’t you still have to fix her?” 

"Oh, no,” Tony calls over his shoulder. “I fixed that thing over a week ago." 


	8. "So will you marry me, or what?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Steve tries to propose like eight times but chickens out every time, then one day Tony finds the ring box in his pocket while they're making out.
> 
> Original post can be found [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/91752387223/stevetony-steve-tries-to-propose-like-eight-times).

“You ok?” Tony asks, pulling away to look him in the eye. 

Steve looks drunk out of his mind. His face is red, and lips swollen from their kissing, and Tony still gets a thrill from the knowledge that he’s the cause of it. ”Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” 

“You’ve been acting weird all week." 

"No, I haven’t,” Steve argues. 

Tony brings a hand up to cup his cheek, fingers brushing over the slight stubble. “Mm… yeah. I don’t buy it.” 

Steve rolls his eyes. “I’m _fine_ , Tony.” He grips Tony’s hips and backs him up against the wall. “Now will ya just shut up and _fuck_ me?” he growls. 

“N-no fair,” Tony breathes out. He kind of regrets telling Steve just how much of a turn-on the accent is. Kind of. 

It’s obvious that Steve’s pulling out all the stops when he sucks on a particularly sensitive spot on Tony’s neck and unceremoniously shoves a hand down his pants. 

Steve thinks he’s good at playing dirty—and he _is_ —but there’s one thing that he often forgets, and it’s that Tony was his teacher. 

“You want me to fuck you good and hard?” Tony says, rutting against him. “Right up against this wall?” 

“Yeah, Tony. Give it to me,” Steve whines. 

“I’ll give it to you,” Tony says, hand sliding down Steve’s back, “I’ll give you exactly what you need. I’ll—What the hell is this?" 

Steve freezes when Tony’s hand closes over the small box in Steve’s back pocket. “Uh…” 

Tony fishes out the item and gapes when he realizes it’s a _ring box_. “Steve. What is this?” 

Steve’s face turns even redder than before. “Um… open it and find out?” he offers lamely. 

Tony gives him an unimpressed look but complies anyway, opening the box to reveal a simple gold band tucked inside. “You were going to propose?” 

"I was… I’ve been trying… for a while—" 

"Wait, is this why you’ve been so out of it lately?" 

Steve looks shy, not at all like he has his hand down Tony’s jeans and gripping his cock. 

Tony glances at the ring, back at Steve, and then back at the ring. 

"So…”

Tony looks at him expectantly. “So what?”

“Will you? Marry me, that is?” Steve clarifies.

“I dunno, Rogers. That was a pretty lame proposal—”

“It’s not my fault you found the ring before I could ask!”

“Well, it’s not my fault you chickened out every other day this week,” Tony counters.

Steve scowls. “You’re really not going to marry me?”

“Aren’t you supposed to get down on one knee? Give me some big emotional speech or whatever? Sweep me off my feet and kiss me passionately?”

“You’ve never been one for cliches.”

Tony shrugs. “Maybe I want to be cliche for once.” 

“Fine. You want to be swept off your feet?” Steve says, and without further warning, he picks Tony up in a bridal carry and carries him toward the bedroom. “I’ll sweep you off your feet, all right." 

Tony makes a sound of approval. “I like where this is going.” 

"So will you marry me, or what?” Steve asks again, laying him down on the bed. 

“I think I’ll need some convincing before I accept." 

Steve just lets out a sigh before getting to work.

Tony eventually accepts (if his screams of ‘ _yes, yes, YES_ ’ are anything to go by)


	9. Inexperienced Tony and Playboy!Steve AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: "inexperienced tony goes on a date with somebody who gets real handsy and winds up fleeing home, where he runs into steve while he's in the middle of freaking out. steve is like WHOA WTF NEED TO CUT A BITCH and assures tony that no there is no reason why he should put up with that and that he was totally right to ditch them"
> 
> Original post [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/113662335863/inexperienced-tony-goes-on-a-date-with-somebody).

It isn’t a secret that Tony is not veryexperienced when it comes to dating.

Well… it isn’t a secret to his _friends_ , so in reality, it’s actually a _huge_ secret.

It isn’t something that Tony is proud—or ashamed—of. It was merely a fact: just a statement of truth. 

In the twenty-eight plus years that Tony has been living on Earth, he had had one serious relationships with a business associate shortly after taking over Stark Industries, but that had crashed and burned within six months.

Literally.

The woman had gotten so upset with Tony’s inability to spare time for her that she had stolen his car and crashed it into a tree.

Since then, he’s been on dates… Okay, a _lot_ of dates (thanks to Rhodey and Pepper) but none of them are very successful.

They usually consist of dinner or a movie, and end with the girl (or guy) asking to go back to Tony’s place.

And Tony never really knows what to do after that.

No, he isn’t a virgin by any means, but he does like to take things slow. The others call him ‘old fashioned,’ but the thing is, he’s just never been comfortable having sex with someone he barely knows.

So out of the dozens and dozens of first dates, there are maybe a handful of second and third dates, and of _course_ , the paparazzi know exactly when Tony is out and about, so in the past few years, he garners this reputation as a _playboy_ of all things.

He actually finds it pretty hilarious, except on nights like tonight where he finds himself being kissed by yet another young model or singer or rising businessman. .

This guy smells like expensive cigars and cologne, and the coffee they’ve been drinking hasn’t done much to mask the taste of alcohol on his tongue. 

Tony pulls away and puts some distance between them.

“What’s wrong?”

“I… I’m sorry, Ty.” He really is, because Ty is charming and very handsome, and Tony is very much attracted to him, but: “I just… I don’t think I’m up for anything more tonight.”

Ty looks at him incredulously. “Really? Tony _Stark_ isn’t up for a little romp in the sack?”

The way he says Tony’s name makes Tony’s stomach churn.

“I’m having a good time just talking like this,” Tony says, “I don’t see why we have to—”

“I bought you flowers, took you to dinner, took you _dancing_ ,” Ty snarls, “and _this_ is the thanks I get?”

“I didn’t ask you to do any of those things,” Tony shoots back.

“Then shouldn’t you be thanking me for being such a thoughtful and considerate date?” Ty backs him up against the kitchen counter and places his hands on Tony’s hips. “C’mon, baby. It’ll be fun. I’ll show you a great time—”

“ _No_ , Ty—”

“I promise it’ll be worth it,” Ty says before leaning in for a kiss. 

Tony moves his head to avoid it, but Ty just brushes his lips against Tony’s neck instead. “Ty, please, I really don’t want to—”

“C’mon, Tony. You’ll have a—”

_“I believe the man said ‘no.’”_

Both of them look up and see a very tense Steve standing at the other side of the kitchen. Ty immediately backs off, but his hands don’t leave Tony’s body.

“It isn’t very polite to interrupt other people’s dates,” Ty snaps.

“It isn’t very polite to force others into do something they don’t want to,” Steve retorts, and his ensuing glare is enough to make Ty release his grip on Tony’s hips.

Ty turns back to look at Tony. “Well? Are you gonna tell your friend to leave us alone?”

Tony swallows. “I… I think you should go, Ty.”

It’s not the response Ty was expecting, if the scandalized look on his face is anything to go by.

“If I walk out that door, Tony, I’m not coming back.”

Tony looks the man in the eye. “Just go, Ty.”

Ty grits his teeth, grabs his jacket and storms towards the waiting elevator.

“Are you okay?” Steve asks, his voice much softer than before. He moves towards Tony, but stops a few feet away.

Tony nods. “Thank you.”

“Thank JARVIS.” Steve rests his hip against the counter. “He’s the one who alerted me. I just did what any decent person would do.”

Well, that explained the elevator, then.

“Do you want some coffee?” Tony offers lamely. “I mean, if you aren’t busy or…”

“Sure.” Steve smiles at him, and Tony gets that familiar fluttery feeling in his chest again.

He ducks his head and moves toward the cupboard to grab a mug, but Steve stops him.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got it,” Steve says. “Why don’t you sit down? I’ll fix you up a new cup, too.”

“Um… thanks. Milk and—”

“Two sugars, right?” Steve finishes for him, and Tony can only nod as he seats himself at the table.

They don’t say anything as Steve fixes their coffee—the only sound in the room being the occasional _clink_ of the spoon against the mug as Steve stirs in the milk and sugar. It probably should’ve been awkward, but Tony’s glad to find that it isn’t in the slightest.

Tony graciously accepts the mug that Steve offers to him.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

“No, I mean, for… what you did earlier,” Tony clarifies. “I know you think it’s nothing, but I really do appreciate it.”

“You know you can always come to me if you need anything, Tony,” Steve responds, his voice uncharacteristically shaky.

Tony looks over and sees that Steve’s entire body is practically vibrating with tension. “Are you all right, Steve?”

“No, I’m not. Not at all.” Steve whips around in his chair so quickly he almost knocks his mug off the counter. “No one should ever treat you like that, Tony.”

Tony has absolutely no idea what he’s supposed to say to that.

“I know that you and I approach dating… _differently_ ,” Steve continues, “but if you ever tell me ‘no’—if _anyone_ ever tells me ‘no’—I would stop. No one should have to put up with that. You don’t deserve that.”

“What do you think I deserve, then?” Tony inquires. He isn’t sure where he gets this sudden bout of confidence, but his date’s gone to hell, so he figures he doesn’t have anything to lose.

“More than whatever that jackass was willing to give you,” Steve mutters under his breath, which Tony finds absolutely endearing.

Then again, Steve’s could probably make something like stealing candy from babies look adorable. 

Tony’s so head over heels for the man, it’s pathetic.

“You’ll find someone,” Steve says with a sad smile, “Someone who’ll give you everything you want and treat you the way you should be treated. Someone—”

“Like you?”

And just like that, he’s done it. He’s been told it would feel like having a huge weight lifted off his shoulders, but he just feels like he’s going to go into cardiac arrest at any moment. 

“Tony, I’m not…” Steve gets up from his seat. “I can’t. I’m sorry.”

“What do you mean you ‘ _can’t_ ’?” Tony asks.

“God knows I want to give you what you want, Tony, but you should be with someone who actually deserves you—”

Tony sputters. “ _You_ don’t deserve _me_? Steve, you’re _Captain America_. You are literally the embodiment of everything good, and you don’t think you _deserve_ me?”

“Look,” Steve starts, “Up until a few months ago, I didn’t think I’d ever fall in lo—feel this way,” he corrects himself, but it’s too late, because Tony’s already heard it. “I was… content with my relationships, because they helped fill the void—if only temporarily. But _you_ , you have these… _ideals_ , and you want stability, and you shouldn’t have to deal with my past.”

“You love me,” Tony says.

“That… that’s not the point—” 

Once again, Tony isn’t sure what it is that comes over him, but he pulls Steve down by the collar of his shirt and kisses him. 

“You told me you _love_ me,” Tony says when they pull apart a moment later. “You can’t expect me to not have a reaction.”

Steve takes both of Tony’s hands in his own. “To be fair, I wasn’t planning on telling you.” 

“I love you, too, by the way.”

“I figured as much,” Steve says, leaning forward and pressing their foreheads together. “I’m not good at this.”

“I’m not asking for forever,” Tony says. “Just promise me you’ll try.”

“I can do that,” he replies, before capturing Tony’s lips in a kiss.


	10. "I think I loved you?" (616/MA:A)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: The Avengers get hit with a spell/beam/illness that makes them all come down with amnesia. But it's decided that telling the world that the Avengers are out of commission is too likely to incite a panic, so they end up muddling their way through while trying to learn about themselves. EVERYONE assumes Steve and Tony are dating, even Steve and Tony, so when they get their memories back it comes as kind of a surprise that they weren't. (Rhodey, Sam and Bucky may show up and laugh at them)
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/107239263668/the-avengers-get-hit-with-a-spellbeamillness).

“I’m pretty sure we’re dating.”

Steve, and the rest of the Avengers, shift their gaze from the television to Tony. His clothes are wrinkled, hair unkempt, and eyes bloodshot—it’s obvious he hadn’t left his workshop since they returned from their mission yesterday morning. “What makes you say that?”

“I remember spending a lot of time with you,” Tony says.

“All of us spend a lot of time with each other,” Steve says hesitantly. 

“But I can single you out. I don’t know why, but I specifically remember seeking you out all the time. And I… I think I loved you? I obviously can’t say for sure, but—”

“It makes sense to me,” Natasha says after a slightly awkward silence. “I know none of us can remember anything since the Chitauri, but you two make sense.”

“And something tells me I made fun of you two _a lot_ ,” Clint says, eyes glued to his cell phone.

“So what?”

“All I’m saying is it wouldn’t surprise me.” 

~

Steve stirs from his fitful slumber when he hears someone knocking on his door. He rubs the sleep from his eyes and climbs out of bed, surprised to find Tony standing outside his room. 

“Tony?” Steve says, now fully awake. “What are—Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Tony says quickly. “I uh… I couldn’t sleep.” He fidgets with the hem of his t-shirt. “I actually don’t know why I’m here, but I think this actually happens a lot and… Fuck, I’m sorry I woke you up. I’m just gonna… go now…”

“Tony, wait.” Steve reaches for the other man’s hand, stopping him in his tracks. “Do you want to try sleeping with me?” He blushes. “I mean, in my bed? It might… help…?” Steve was trying to refrain from revealing that he hadn’t been able to sleep well either, even if it was a little selfish. 

Tony appraises him. “I don’t want you to do anything you aren’t comfortable with.”

“It’s fine. We’re dating, aren’t we?” Steve reasons. “I’m sure we do it all the time. We’ve known each other like this for almost two weeks now; we aren’t strangers.”

“Right. Um… if you say so.”

~

“We _weren’t_ dating?!” Steve and Tony exclaim simultaneously.

Bucky, Sam and Rhodey bust out laughing, while the rest of the Avengers stand idly by, confused by the situation as well.

“I could have sworn that our Captain and Anthony were courting,” Thor says, clearly puzzled.

“Same, bud,” Bruce agrees. 

“ _You_!” Tony points an accusatory finger at Rhodey. “You _knew_ and you didn’t say anything!”

“Why would I?” Rhodey retorts. “I was getting so tired of listening to you waxing poetic about his bravery and his leadership and his _smile_. I thought you would finally shut up after you two got together.”

“We didn’t think you’d actually get _worse_ ,” Sam says with a snicker, making Tony blush.

“That wasn’t—!”

“How did he describe his eyes, again?” Sam asks. “Sparkling blue oceans or something?”

“Clear azure eyes,” Bucky supplies with a smirk.

“You were all in on this?” Steve asks, his voice in full Captain mode again.

“Hey!” Bucky says defensively. “Shouldn’t you be _thanking_ us for getting you the best sex you’ve ever had?” 

Steve feels his face practically burst into flames. “ _Bucky_!” he hisses. 

“That is totally not the—wait, _really_?” Steve feels Tony’s eyes on him, and all Steve wants to do is melt into a puddle on the floor.

“That’s what he said,” Sam confirms. 

“Come on, you two,” Bucky says, exasperated. “You’ve been in love with each other for over a year. Who knows when you two would’ve gotten together if this whole mess hadn’t happened? Just kiss and make up already.”

Steve can still feel Tony’s gaze boring into his skull, but the last thing he wants to do is look him in the eye. He doesn’t know if he’ll be able to handle the rejec—

“Steve.”

Here it comes.

“Steve, look at me.”

Steve does, and is surprised to see that Tony is standing less than a foot away from him. He takes a deep breath and mulls over the apology in his head.

_I’m sorry, Tony. I didn’t mean for you to find out that I’ve been hopelessly in love with you. I completely understand if you want some space, so don’t worry about—_

But before Steve could say anything, Tony grabs him by the shirt collar and pulls him down for a kiss. 

“You idiot,” Tony says when he pulls away. “Why didn’t you say anything before?”

“Why didn’t _you_?!” Steve counters. 

“I guess we’re both pretty stupid then.”

“Yeah, you are,” Rhodey agrees. “I’m selling the movie rights to Hallmark.” 


	11. safe space

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Steve falls asleep in the workshop when he's stressed out.
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/107177973033/musicalluna-replied-to-your-postgive-me).

Steve’s job is by no means an easy one, but on particularly stressful days, he likes to go downstairs to Tony’s workshop. 

Some days, Tony will be so immersed in his work that the only acknowledgement Steve will get is a ‘hello’ and a quick peck on the cheek before the genius is back to coding or wiring or… whatever it is he does. But Steve just walks over to the worn leather couch in the corner of the room and listens to the sounds of the workshop until they lull him to sleep: the steady hum of the machinery in the background, or the subtle beeping coming from Dummy’s charging station. 

His favorite sound, however, is Tony’s running dialogue as he works: the way he mutters numbers and equations under his breath, the excited tone in his voice when he figures out a solution, the occasional curse when something doesn’t go quite the way he planned. Steve especially loves listening to Tony’s conversations with JARVIS and Dummy—he loves how little the man has to say to get his point across to his companions. 

In the workshop, Tony is always in his element. It’s where Tony gets his best ideas, and where Tony creates his most brilliant inventions. 

The workshop is where Steve sees Tony at his happiest, and his most somber. It’s where Tony feels the most accomplished, but at times, dejected. It’s where Tony can be the most vulnerable—the most _open_ and _raw_. The workshop is where they fell in love, and Steve wouldn’t have it any other way. 

Today’s mission had been a relative success, but there were more casualties than Steve had accounted for. He takes the elevator down to Tony’s workshop, keys in his personal code, and trudges through the sliding glass door. 

Tony’s situated at his work bench, fine tuning something in one of the gauntlets of the Mark XLV. His hair is in disarray, there’s a bandaid on cheek, and a dark smudge on his right arm. The man looks up and peers at Steve through his safety goggles (which are so scratched that Steve’s surprised the man can see through them at all anymore) and he smiles, and Steve immediately feels like all of the tension leaves his body. 

Tony puts his soldering iron down, strips off his gloves and goggles, and makes his way over to Steve, wrapping his arms around the blond’s torso. Steve buries his face into the crook of Tony’s neck and inhales the scent of burning metal and a hit of ivory soap.

“Bad day?” Tony murmurs.

Steve can only nod. 

Tony moves away to place a kiss on Steve’s forehead before taking his hand and leading him to the couch. Tony sits and lets Steve lay his head on his lap.

“Wanna talk about it?” Tony asks.

Steve shakes his head.

Tony nods, getting the hint. “Do you want me to talk about something else, then?”

Steve closes his eyes and makes a sound of contentment when Tony starts running his fingers through his hair. “Tell me about your day.” 


	12. secret admirer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: No one's ever done it for him, but Tony loves being the one romanced.
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/101058575823/no-ones-ever-done-it-for-him-but-tony-loves).

Steve’s always admired Tony’s attention to detail for all of the dates he’s planned for his exes, but it isn’t until he comes to terms with his own feelings for the man that he realizes it’s Tony who always does the romancing. 

It takes Steve a couple of weeks to muster up the courage to finally try to win Tony over, but with the help of Jan, Jarvis, and a couple of relationship advice columns in those trashy magazines that Jess leaves around the mansion, Steve formulates a plan. 

One morning, Tony walks into the kitchen and finds a giant bouquet of flowers at his seat at the table. To the delight of Steve, as well as the other Avengers, Tony actually _blushes_. Tied to the vase is a note indicating that the arrangement is from a “secret admirer.” Tony just brushes it off like it’s nothing, and grabs a bagel before heading to his office. But later that night, on the way to his room, Steve passes Tony’s quarters and sees the bouquet on his nightstand.

Steve continues sending Tony gifts throughout the week: his favorite chocolates, a mixtape of his favorite music, and even a giant teddybear. Tony tries his best to hide it, but Steve can tell that he’s elated with all of the attention. 

“What’s this?” Tony asks one evening, picking up the tray of homemade cookies on the counter. 

“It appears to be from your secret admirer, Sir,” Jarvis says, glancing knowingly at Steve. 

“They aren’t poisoned, are they?” Tony asks, even though he already has a cookie halfway to his mouth. 

“We had Logan check them,” Steve says over his paper. 

Tony pops the cookie into his mouth and makes a sound of approval. “I don’t know if I should be flattered they know my favorite foods, or a little creeped out.” 

“Maybe a bit of both?” Steve offers. 

“Hm… maybe.” Tony takes a bite out of another cookie and holds the plate out towards Steve. “Want one?" 

Steve shrugs and takes one for himself: so what if he already ate over a dozen while baking them only a few hours prior? They were still delicious. 

The gifts continue, until one afternoon where Pepper goes to Tony’s office to inform him that all of Tony’s evening plans were cancelled for a dinner reservation at Tony’s favorite restaurant. 

"What if they’re a serial killer or something?” Tony asks, straightening his tie in the mirror. 

“Trust me, they aren’t,” Pepper assures. 

“Can you go with me to the restaurant just in case? I could give you a signal that things are going well, blah blah blah." 

"I don’t think that will be necessary, but sure." 

So Pepper personally escorts Tony to the restaurant situated just two blocks away from the tower. And Pepper is the one that inquiries about the reservation to the maitre d. Pepper is the one that guides him through the large dining area to the smaller, more intimate private space towards the back of the room. 

Pepper is also the one that takes a photo of Tony’s slack-jawed face when Tony sees Steve, dressed to the nines in a dark blue suit, waiting for him at the table. She pats Tony on the back before making her exit. 

"Steve?" 

"The one and only,” Steve replies with a grin. "Shall we?“ he asks, gesturing to the chair he had pulled out for him. 

Tony nods dumbly and sits. 

"I hope you aren’t disappointed,” Steve says as he settles in his own chair. 

“Disappointed?!” Tony exclaims, mildly offended. “How could _you_ be a disappointment?” 

Steve is the one that blushes this time. “I mean, uh… you’re always with such classy, high society people, and—” 

"I just found out that _Captain America_ has been trying to woo me over the past two weeks,” Tony counters. “I think all of that pales in comparison.” 

So they wine and dine, and share a dessert. Steve pays for the meal, and he walks Tony home. 

"Thank you,” Tony says when they get to Tony’s bedroom door. “No one’s ever…” He clears his throat. “Tonight was great. I had a really nice time." 

Steve smiles. “I’m glad. I’d like to take you out tomorrow, if you’re free.” 

"I’ll be free,” Tony answers quickly. “What did you have in mind?" 

"How does a picnic in the park sound?" 

"Incredible cliche." 

"You like it anyway." 

"Shut up,” Tony says, but doesn’t deny it. Steve thinks it’s okay because the red blooming across Tony’s face speaks for itself. 


	13. headlines

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Tony has a colourful sexual past. No emotions involved. Steve knows this, so he doesn't take Tony's flirting with him seriously. He laughs when Tony gives him gifts or asks him to dinner; thinking this is just Tony being Tony. But what he doesn't realize is that Tony genuinely has feelings for him and is attempting to court him. Every time Steve laughs, shakes his head and shakes his head and walks away from Tony it's like a dagger to his heart.
> 
> Originally posted here.

Tony doesn’t know how to communicate: his failed relationship with Pepper is evidence of that (he’s over it, really he is; they may have loved each other, but they right _for_ each other). 

The thing is, Tony’s selfish enough to want to keep trying to win Steve over anyway 1) because it’s _Steve_ , and 2) because Tony is head over heels in love with him. 

The rest of the team knows what Tony’s trying to do, but the last thing they want to do is meddle because nothing good ever comes out of it (they may have tried once or… five times, already). 

But one morning, a picture of them walking out of a restaurant together makes the front page of all of the papers, and the morning talk shows can’t get enough of Iron Man and Captain America’s secret love affair. 

Tony has JARVIS hide all evidence of the photos, and is about to dial the number of the Daily Bugle to give them an earful when Steve returns from his run and places one of the tabloid magazines on the counter. 

“Did you know about this?” Steve asks. 

“Yeah, I… Sorry, Steve. I’ve been trying to fix it,” Tony says. “Really, I have. It’s just—These guys are absolute _nightmares_.” 

"Hey, no, don’t work yourself up over it,” Steve reassures. “It’s just a stupid magazine, right? They live off of stupid rumors like this.” He scratches his throat and quietly adds: “It isn’t like any of it is true." 

"R-Right,” Tony stutters. “It’s not. True. Not true.” He eyes are looking everywhere that isn’t directly at Steve. “I uh… I’ve got to get down to the office or Pepper will have my head. Excuse me." 

"Tony?" 

Tony freezes just in front of the elevator when Steve calls his name. 

"Tony, are you okay?” the man asks, genuine concern etched on his features. 

“I’m fine,” Tony says, lying through his teeth. 

“No, you’re not." 

"Everything’s fine, Steve. I swear.” He slowly backs into the elevator. “I have to get to work, and I’ll get my secretary to set those tabloids straight, and—" 

Steve reaches out and grabs his arm. “Tony, what’s wrong?” 

Tony panics, eyes darting from Steve’s face, to the hand on his arm, to the elevator doors sliding shut behind them. ”Steve, I really can’t do this right now.” 

"Tony, whatever it is, you can tell me,” Steve urges. “You’re my best friend, and I want to help." 

"Don’t you see?” Tony says desperately. “That’s exactly it: you’re my best friend, and no matter what I do, you can’t see me as anything more than that. And I keep telling myself I’m fine with it—that I’m fine with us just being friends—but it just gets worse every day and—" 

"Tony—" 

"I’m sorry about those headlines, I really am, but I… They aren’t completely untrue. I like yo—”

“Tony, I—" 

"No, I’m prett—I’m _positive_ that I love you, and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier, or make my intentions more clear, but—mmf!” 

Tony’s silenced when Steve pulls him in for a kiss, and all that is going through Tony’s mind is _Why aren’t you kissing him back, you idiot?_ But before Tony can even make his body cooperate, Steve pulls back. His cheeks are flushed, and his lips slightly swollen, and it’s the cutest thing Tony has ever seen. 

"I love you, too,” Steve says. 

“You… you do?” Tony asks, bewildered. 

Steve nods. “I do. I have… for a long time. I just didn’t think you felt the same way—” 

“I’ve been trying to court you for _months_!” 

"What?” Steve asks, taken aback. "That’s what all of the flirting, and those dinners and movies were for?“ 

"What did you think I was trying to do?" 

"You flirt like you _breathe_ , Tony! What was I supposed to think? I mean, sure you asked me to dinner, but more than half the time, you’d invite someone else too.” 

"Because I didn’t want to scare you off!” Tony counters. 

They stand in silence for a few moments before breaking into laughter. 

“We’re really good at the whole communication thing, aren’t we?” Steve says lightly. 

“The best,” Tony jokes. 

“So…" 

"So,” Tony starts, taking Steve’s hand in his. “Steve Rogers, I’d like to take you on a date tonight. And the night after that, and basically every night after that. If you want to, that is." 

Steve smiles. “Yes. To all of it.” 

"I would also like to kiss you,” he tentatively adds. “I mean, if that’s okay…?" 

"You don’t have to keep doing that, Tony. I want whatever you’re willing to give me,” Steve says with a chuckle. “I’m all yours." 


	14. "Is that what you want?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: I really, really need a Steve Tony break up fic. Which focuses on the being broken up and THEN getting back together. Ideally, they would be broken up for real for quite some time, maybe date other people in the meantime but in the end, they just love each other, okay? 
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/87533305453/i-really-really-need-a-steve-tony-break-up-fic).

“You can’t mean that.”

“Well, I do,” Tony says. He averts his gaze, looking down at the pathetic mess on his work bench.

Steve frowns. “You’re being ridiculous, Tony.”

“I’m being _reasonable_ , Steve. This could _never_ work!”

"Why not?”

“Because it just _can’t_!” Tony says, looking him in the eye again. “Do you really want me to go through every single reason why we shouldn’t be together?”

"No, but go ahead if you feel compelled to do so, because I guarantee you that for every reason you tell me we shouldn’t be together, I can give you five for why we _should_ ,” Steve countered. “We made it work—”

"It ended a year later—”

“Because of _you_!” Steve says angrily. “Who dumps their significant other on their anniversary?”

"It was going to happen eventually,” Tony says, his voice void of emotion, and Steve hated it; hated that Tony was speaking of the subject like he was explaining a physics equation to him. “You can find someone who can make you happy—”

“You make me happy—”

“And can give you what you want.”

“And is that what you want?” Steve asks, “To not be together?”

“It’s not that simple.”

“Because _you’re_ making it unnecessarily complicated,” Steve says, growing more and more impatient by the minute. “You just—you _left_ , Tony. No explanation. How do you think that made me feel?”

"I’m sorry.”

The words are spoken so quietly that Steve isn’t sure that he had heard them at first. “Why?”

Tony’s brow furrows. “Why what?”

“Why did you _leave_? I thought you were happy—”

"Of course I was happy! I was the happiest I had ever been in my life, but that wasn’t enough. _I’m_ not enough!”

The ensuing silence in the room is deafening.

"Tony… what… What are you talking about?”

The brunet looks at him mournfully. “You need someone who can give you everything you deserve, Steve.”

Steve sighs, walking around the table so he can stand next to Tony. “Don’t you think I should dictate who I want in my life?” he asks. “Who I want to be with? You can’t just say things like that—say that you aren’t ‘good enough’ to be with me, because I’m not anything special, Tony.”

Tony wants to tell him that he’s wrong. He’s wrong, he’s wrong, he’s _wrong_ because Steve is the best man that Tony has ever known, and he’s pretty sure the rest of the world has the same sentiments (except maybe HYDRA).

He wants to finish this argument and kick Steve out of his workshop once and for all so that he could find someone who would be more deserving of the love and devotion that Steve has to offer, but Steve’s next words only make him freeze in place.

“You’re more than I could ever dream of having.”

And Tony doesn’t think it’s _fair_. He has more blood on his hands than he would like to admit—more sins to atone for than actual redeeming qualities. Every one that he’s ever cared about was put in harm’s way _because of him_. He doesn’t know why Steve is fighting so hard for them.

Tony knows it was selfish of him to practically jump the other man in the living room over a year ago, but he had honestly expected Steve to politely reject him so that he could jet off to Malibu and forget about his stupid unrequited crush.

He had never expected Steve to throw him down onto the couch and have his way with him.

“I love you,” Steve declares. “You’re the most important person in my life. If there’s one thing about our relationship that I wish I could do over, it would be spending more of my time trying to convince you of it.”


	15. "It was worth it."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AU where Tony dies in battle and Steve tries to cope. Angst with a happy ending. I promise! 
> 
> For the life of me, I cannot find the _original_ original post... Idk why. Oh, well...
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/95228870588/tonyfujikawa-brandnewfashion-tonyfujikawa).

The miracle is that no one bothers Steve about it. Sure, his phone is ringing off the hook, and the team’s secretary is struggling to keep up with all of the messages, but none of them are trying to pry. I mean, there weren’t many bad messages to begin with after Tony died (only a couple idiotic ones about him being a war profiteer or whatever, but they were obviously baseless since it’s been YEARS since any of that happened), but the media keeps asking for quotes from the team members, especially Steve. 

Jan and Thor make a public announcement a few days after Tony’s death, but the reporters are absolutely _relentless_. Jessica Jones is the one that suggests they finally have a real press conference a month later with just a handful of the most prominent Avengers, but Steve demands to go as well, because the reporters would definitely say something about the leader not being there. 

The first ten minutes go relatively smoothly, with the reporters asking general questions about what transpired on that terrible day: Was Mr. Stark in top fighting condition at the time? Had the armor been malfunctioning at all during the battle? Etc. etc.

Then a reporter towards the front asks: “Captain Rogers, it’s evident that in addition to being your co-leader of the team, Tony Stark was a friend of yours too. Is there anything that you would personally like to say to the public?” 

Suddenly all eyes are on Steve, and the Avengers visible stiffen where they’re standing. They’ve all obviously known that someone would eventually ask Steve for his personal opinion, but that doesn’t mean any of them are _ready_ for it, let alone Steve himself. 

The wood of the podium suddenly cracks where Steve is gripping the edge, and it isn’t until Steve feels the splinters digging into his skin that he notices it. 

Steve takes breath before speaking: ”To say we were just friends is kind of an insult to our relationship,” he says with a surprisingly level voice. “We knew each other for a long time—”

“He was like a brother, then?” the reporter asks, and Jan wants to punch the woman in the face for her lack of tact.

Steve visibly tenses as he tries to find the right words. ”Tony was…” He clears his throat and inhales deeply before trying again: “Tony was more than…” Steve hears the crack in his voice when he says Tony’s name and feels the tears welling up in his eyes. He feels Thor gently squeeze his shoulder in reassurance, and he musters up the courage to try again. “Tony was my best friend,” he finally says. “He knew me better than anyone, and I…”

Steve furiously blinks his eyes, and suddenly becomes even more aware of the sea of faces staring at him expectantly; the swarm of phones and cameras being held out to capture his ever word and movement. 

Steve is vaguely aware of his lips moving, but his throat feels drier than a desert. His hands are shaking, and the lights above them feel a hundred times brighter than before. 

He manages to utter a broken “I miss him” before falling to his knees and surrendering to the tears. The room immediately falls silent, save for Steve’s sobs. Captain America, their nation’s icon, breaks on live television: it’s a sight that no one had ever thought they’d see, let alone be possible. 

No one moves, not even when Steve’s cries become louder and Thor and Carol escort him out of the room. 

Jan brushes away her own tears and approaches the podium, getting the attention of the reporters again. “The Avengers have been a team for almost ten years,” she says. “Steve Rogers and Tony Stark were romantically involved for the last six of them.” She deliberately pauses, expecting a flood of questions, but they don’t come. 

No one says a word.

There’s nothing but the shocked faces of the reporters, and the faint cries of her teammates behind her. 

~

“There’s no guarantee this will work,” Richards says as he readies the machine. 

“I know,” Steve replies. He fingers the gold band hanging off the chain around his neck: it’s a habit he had gotten into ever since Tony’s death, but this is the first time he’s let anyone actually see the small piece of jewelry. “I’ve got to try anyway." 

"He needs to,” Bruce adds, surveying the monitors around the room. “The Avengers need him. Hell, the _world_ needs him: I can’t even fathom the implications that… that Tony’s death has on the progress of humanity for the next fifty years.” He looks at Steve apologetically. "I’m sorry, I don’t mean to be so–“

Steve shakes his head. "I’m getting him back. That’s all that matters." 

Reed’s mouth sets into a hard line, but he motions for Steve to enter the machine once the levels are steady. "I’m sending you back to exactly two minutes the incident. I’m not sure how long it will be until we can get you back, given the limited amount of time we’ve had to set this up,” he informs. "There’s no guarantee that you can change the events, and even if you do, we have no idea what other else could transpire because of it. I can’t guarantee that everything will turn out okay, but Bruce is right: the world needs Tony in this time, and I believe it’s still a risk worth taking. We just have to prepare for the worst. Do you understand me, Captain?“

Steve nods. 

The next few hours of Steve’s life is a blur: he remembers Reed counting down the seconds before sending Steve back. He remembers finding himself in the middle of Times Square, about half a block from where the accident had happened, and then he remembers running. He remembers diverting Tony away from the villain, remembers the confusion in Tony’s face when he looks back where he was standing in time to see the bomb detonate.

He remembers going back with Tony and rescuing the civilians that got in way of the blast. He remembers more bombs going off, and remembers taking the villain down in much more time than before: there’s exponentially more damage, but significantly less casualties, and even if that is all that Steve could’ve accomplished, it would’ve been worth it.

But then he hears Tony zooming over his head before touching down next to him on the pavement. Tony takes off his helmet, and when their eyes meet, Steve’s breath catches: he can’t believe it. He did it.

Tony’s alive.

“You’re not my Steve,” Tony says matter-of-factly.

Steve shakes his head, unable to articulate an actual response. 

Tony looks over his shoulder—back at the largest smoking crater where he had been standing not an hour ago. “This isn’t how things were supposed to happen.”

“No,” Steve confirms, miraculously finding his voice again.

“How long ago…?”

“It’s been about six months in my time.”

Tony looks at him remorsefully. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Everything’s okay now.”

“Still,” Tony says, eyes flickering to the ring hanging around Steve’s neck, “it couldn’t have been easy.” Steve notices him clench his left hand, no doubt trying to feel the same gold band on his finger. “Don’t even try lying to me.”

“I’d never lie to you,” Steve says. His lips quirk into a small smile before adding: “You’d never buy it anyway.”

Tony chuckles. “Damn right, I wouldn’t.” 

They stand there for a few moments, smiling dopily at each other. Tony suddenly opens his mouth to say something more, but his body visibly stiffens, and that’s when Steve can faintly pick up his voice—his younger self’s voice—asking Tony where he is.

That’s also when the portal back to his time materializes next to them.

“I guess that’s my queue.”

Tony gives him a look of deep and utter gratitude. “Thank you,” he says sincerely. “I don’t even… I can’t imagine how difficult things must have been…”

“It was worth it.” 


	16. a bargain (616)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: The serum stops working while they're both still fairly young and Tony bargains with a demon or an asgardian or something to give half his life to Steve. He won't live past seventy, but at least he'll have that much time with Steve beside him. And Steve is so MAD because Tony is literally killing himself for Steve.
> 
> Original post [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/133444243768/so-a-few-days-ago-i-sent-onemuseleft-an-angsty).

When the Enchantress hit him with her spell, Tony had expected chaos and glittery spirals of cosmic light, crazy mystical chants, and maybe a bit of vertigo.

He may have hated magic, but he still couldn’t help the tiny pang of disappointment when all he felt was a light breeze.

Tony checked himself over, spinning in place a couple times before looking back at Amora. “That’s it?”

“What were you expecting, Stark?” Amora asked, her lips curled into a teasing smirk. “This isn’t a Disney movie.”

“I know that,” Tony snapped. “I just… wanted to make sure that you did it.”

“I’d never go back on my word,” Amora promised. “Especially regarding a request such as yours. It’s…” She thought for a moment. “You don’t see that kind of dedication and resoluteness anymore. It’s admirable.”

Tony snorted.

Admirable.

_Right._

Thor chose that moment to step forward and put a reassuring hand on Tony’s armored shoulder. “Are you all right, brother?”

“Just peachy,” Tony responded with a cheeky grin. 

Thor smiled in turn, but didn’t take a genius to notice the tightness in his features. “I’m glad to hear it.” He turned to Amora and bowed his head. “I know you and I do not always see eye to eye, but I am most grateful for your services today.”

Amora gave the smallest hint of a nod. “You would have done the same.”

Tony noticed Thor steal a glance in his direction before pointedly looked away, and that… that _hurt_ , but Tony chose not to dwell on it.

He knew exactly what he was getting himself into.

Thor gave a shaky sigh. “Aye.”

~

The trip back to Odin’s palace was a quiet one, but Tony didn’t mind.

It just gave him more time to think about how to break the news to Steve.

Tony stood outside of the guest room that he and Steve were sharing, his hand frozen on the handle of the door. He had rehearsed a hundred different scenarios in his head, a million possible outcomes for how the evening would pan out, but this was _Steve_ , and…

Well, none of the scenarios ended particularly well.

Tony steeled himself and pushed the door open, freezing in place when he came face to face with the man in question, and Tony suddenly couldn’t _breathe_ because Steve was there and his eyes were blue and vibrant as ever, his hair silky and golden yellow and his skin, healthy and glowing.

It was hard to believe that the other day, Steve had looked like every bit of the ninety-eight years he was supposed to be, but now…

Now, Steve was younger, yes, but he didn’t look thirty.

He looked… well, _Tony’s_ age. 

“Tony,” Steve said, relief washing over his face. He reached out and brought Tony in for a bone-crushing hug. “I’m so glad you’re back. You didn’t respond and—”

“I’m fine,” Tony assured. “The trip took a little longer than expected, but Thor and I are okay.”

“That’s good,” Steve said, grinning from ear to ear. “What happened anyway? Last night I was… well, y’know, and this morning I woke up and looked like…” He gestured at his body. 

“Amazing, isn’t it?” Tony remarked.

“Yeah,” Steve said, still in awe. “What did you do?”

“Don’t get mad,” Tony said quickly, which was probably the wrong thing to do because Steve went from looking perplexed to distressed in a record-breaking 0.25 seconds. “I need you to hear me out before you jump to any conclusions, all right?”

“Tony,” Steve said slowly, “what did you _do_?”

“Remember a few months ago when the serum suddenly stopped working and you aged seventy years ?” Tony said, keeping his tone light. “Well, now you’re fifty. I mean, I know it’s not thirty, but it’s better than nothing, right?”

“I’m not an idiot, Tony,” Steve retorted. “There’s something you’re not telling me and I want to know what it is.”

Tony was a little bitter about the fact that he couldn’t even get a couple minutes to revel in Steve’s excitement, but he supposed thirty seconds was better than nothing. 

“I went to Amora,” Tony informed.

“The _Enchantress_?” Steve asked, horrified.

Tony nodded, standing his ground. “We made a deal: twenty years of my life in exchange for twenty more for you.”

Steve’s face paled and he staggered back like the floor had been ripped out from right underneath him. “You…”

“I don’t regret it. I knew the costs, and I knew you wouldn’t have approved if I had taken you with me, but it needed to be done.”

“You bargained with the _Enchantress_ ,” Steve said. “Tony, how could you?!”

“You would’ve done the same.” 

“That’s not—” Steve stopped himself and raked a hand through his hair. 

Tony reached out and wrapped his fingers around Steve’s wrist, but Steve recoiled, ripping his arm out of Tony’s hold. “You made a decision that affected our lives and you didn’t consult me. You bargained your life with one of our enemies without telling me. _You’re killing yourself_ for me,” Steve said, his voice wet with tears. “I can’t…”

Tony had expected anger. He expected Steve to scream, yell, lash out. He didn’t expect him to _mourn_. “Steve—”

Steve shook his head. “I’m sorry, I have to—I can’t do this right now,” he said before walking out of the room. 

~

Steve paced the floor of the magnificent banquet hall, “He’s literally killing himself!” 

“Tony was made aware of the risks,” Thor reasoned. “Nothing you do will make him want to reverse what he has done.”

“I don’t want him giving up anything for me.”

Thor frowned. “It wasn’t your decision to make, Steve.”

“Don’t you think I know that?!” Steve snapped. “I _know_ it wasn’t my decision to make, _that’s_ why I’m so angry—”

“At him?”

Steve looked at Thor questioningly. “What?”

“Are you angry with Tony?”

“No,” Steve said almost instantaneously. He couldn’t be mad at Tony even if he wanted to. “I just— _Goddammit_ ,” he cursed. A cloud of dust rose up from where his fist connected with the marble table.

In truth, Steve was mad at himself. All his life, he had been too scrawny, too short, too _weak_ to do anything he wanted to do. The serum had fixed that and had given him the ability to help and protect others—to truly live up to his potential. 

When Steve woke up seventy years in the future, he realized he had missed out on an entire lifetime. Yes, it was unfortunate, but Steve made peace with it—he never expected to get to where he was without paying some sort of price.

Shortly after arriving in the future, Tony happened—the man stormed into Steve’s life and managed to find a permanent place in Steve’s life, and Steve thought that maybe, just _maybe_ , he was meant to end up here.

…but six months ago, Steve was cheated _again_ , and he had regressed back to where he started. 

What good was he if Tony—who Steve had sworn to protect until the end of his days—ended up having to save _him_?

“There is only one explanation for why Tony did what he did,” Thor said, “And it’s because he believes you are worth it, even if you do not believe it yourself.”

~

“What you did was very bold, Anthony Stark,” a voice said above him.

Tony had only heard the dulcet tone of that voice a handful of times before, but he could recognize it anywhere. He made to stand up, but Frigga held up her hand, willing him to remain where he was, and with the kind of grace only a queen like her could muster, she took a seat next to him on the bench.

“Did I do the _right_ thing?” Tony asked quietly.

Frigga regarded him carefully. “What do you think?”

“I think I did.”

“Do you regret your actions?”

“Never.” Tony knew Steve hated hearing it, but he would put Steve’s well-being before his own without hesitation.

“There is your answer,” Frigga said, a small, almost wistful, smile on her face. “My son has told me that you can be rash— _reckless_ , he said—but he also told me about your kindness and your compassion,” she added. “Your ability to see the best in others—”

“I think he was talking about Steve,” Tony said.

Frigga shook her head. “No, I know for a fact that he was talking about _you_ , the Man of Iron.” 

“Oh.”

“Why did you do it?” she asked. “Was it because you had something to prove? To him? To _you_?”

“I didn’t do this so Steve would love me,” Tony answered. “I did it because I already love him. I love him more than I’ve ever loved anything. He’s worth it.”

Frigga regarded him carefully. “Even if he refuses to see you again?” she asked.

“He’s worth it,” Tony said again. He’d say it a thousand times because it was true. 

“Does the Captain believe that?” Frigga asked, catching Tony off guard.

“What?”

“You believe he is worth the sacrifice you made, but does _he_?”

~

Tony found Steve waiting in their room.

“I’m sorry,” Steve said sincerely. “I shouldn’t have walked out like that.”

“You had every right,” Tony replied. “I’m sorry too—for not telling you, I mean, not for saving you. I’d do it again.”

“Why?” Steve demanded. “You know I hate it when you say things like that.”

“But it’s true!” Tony shot back. “You’re worth it to me, Steve. Even if you and I never speak again, it would be worth it. You deserve the world, and I’m going to do my damn best to give it to you.”

Steve approached him slowly, tentatively reaching out and taking Tony’s hands in his. “All I want is _you_ ,” he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. “I’m sorry that I walked out, and I’m sorry that I made you feel so badly about what you did, but it’s only because I want to give _you_ everything. I’m going to spend all of the time you gave me doing just that because nothing else matters if I can’t have you.” 

Tony tugged him forward and crashed their lips together in a kiss so raw, so _desperate_ , that when they finally pulled apart, Tony felt like he was shaking out of his own skin. “You have me,” he breathed against Steve’s mouth. “You’ve always had me and you always will.” 

Steve looked at him, hopeful. “Promise?”

Tony kissed him again, slow and sweet. “I promise.” 


	17. 4 A.M.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Have you ever thought about tony being in bed watching steve sleep telling him how much he loves him in a really soft whisper. every night before bed, because that's the only way he can get a good night sleep.
> 
> Original post [ here.](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/122213371143/have-you-ever-thought-about-tony-being-in-bed)

It’s nearly four in the morning, and Tony can’t sleep.

He’s tired… _exhausted_ from the activities earlier. His body aches, but it’s a wonderful ache—a more than welcome reminder of the feeling of Steve inside of him, fucking into him like they had all the time in the world.

He sits up, the sheets pooling at his waist, and stretches before getting to his feet and walking over to the expansive floor-to-ceiling windows in his suite. He’s completely bare, and he shivers slightly from the air conditioning in the room. For a split-second, he regrets leaving the warmth of his bed, but the city is just so beautiful this late… or maybe it’s early, who really knows anymore? 

Tony looks down and lightly traces the bruises forming on his body: the inside of his thighs, his chest, his neck…

He hisses when he touches a particularly sensitive spot on his collarbone.

He remembers Steve putting the mark there earlier that night—the two of them had just gotten back from dinner and barely made it into the elevator with their clothes on, and Tony’s head was spinning from the champagne. 

Tony raises his hand and presses it up against the window, and the vibrant city lights dull in comparison to the brilliant gold band on his finger.

Tony looks back at Steve, who is sleeping in his bed— _their_ bed—and he can’t help the stupid grin that forms on his face because Steve is his, and he is Steve’s.

Never in a million years did Tony ever think his life would be this perfect, but here he is… _married_.

Tony is married to the only man he’s ever been this crazy about, and all he can think is: “I must have done something spectacular in my past life because there’s no other logical explanation for you ending up with _me_.”

He doesn’t realize he says it out loud until Steve shifts in his sleep. Steve reaches out and frowns when his hand touches nothing but air, and Tony abruptly climbs back into bed—back into Steve’s awaiting arms. Steve makes a sound of contentment and buries his face into the crook of Tony’s neck. It only takes a few moments for Steve’s breathing to even out again, and Tony just tightens his grip around Steve’s shoulders and kisses the top of his head.

“God, I love you,” Tony murmurs. “You… you make me a better person, and I can’t believe you chose me of all people.” Tony combs his fingers through Steve’s hair. “Honestly, I don’t think I’ll ever believe it.”

Tony closes his eyes as he finally feels sleep start to overcome him.

“I really don’t deserve you,” Tony continues, “but I’m going to spend the rest of my life—the rest of _our_ lives—making you happy. As happy as you’ve made me.” Tony kisses his hair again. “I promise.”


	18. Broke Newlyweds AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: BROKE NEWLYWEDS AU. Where Tony's been disowned shortly after graduating from MIT and their friends help them pay for a small wedding and they live in a cheap apartment while Steve waits tables and does art commissions on the side and goes to art school on a combination of scholarships and grants and Tony works at a mechanic shop while looking for a tech company that isn't afraid of SI destroying them for hiring him.
> 
> Original post [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/119816180953/youve-done-a-lot-of-au-ideas-where-one-is-broke).

“I bet you never thought you’d be here, huh?”

Steve looked down at the man in his arms and arched an eyebrow. “What do you mean?” 

“It’s just… I never expected our life to be like this… I mean, you’ve always been in my plans–ever since I met you, I knew I’d do whatever it took to keep you for the rest of my life–but I know this isn’t… This can’t be what you expected.” 

Steve kisses his temple. “The only thing that matters to me is that I’m with you.” 

Tony burrows deeper into Steve’s embrace. “You’re such a romantic.” 

“Guilty as charged.” 

“But seriously, Steve,” Tony continued. “You don’t have to sugarcoat it. I had _money_ when you met me, my name _meant something_ –” 

“I never cared about that.” 

“I know you didn’t, but it would still be nice to give you everything you wanted. Everything you _deserve_ –” 

Steve covered Tony’s mouth with his own, effectively shutting the other man up. He meant for it to be chaste, just a small reminder to Tony that they were both there, and nothing else mattered, but he soon felt Tony tugging on his shirt collar to pull him closer. Steve, of course, obliged, getting lost in the feel of Tony’s lips, tongue, mouth, against his own. The kiss quickly escalated to something more desperate, more frantic. Tony was impatiently trying to take off Steve’s shirt, and Steve reluctantly pulled away to finish the job himself. 

Tony surged forward, but Steve stopped him with a finger to his lips. 

“Steve–” 

“I need you to hear me out, Tony.” 

Tony looked at him incredulously. “ _Now_? Really?” 

“Tony–” 

“Can’t you fuck me first and _then_ talk?” Tony asked, and the look on his face almost made Steve want to oblige, but Steve knew they couldn’t put this off. 

“By the time I’m through with you, you won’t be able to string any words together to form a coherent sentence,” Steve said with a smirk. 

“See, _that’s_ the kind of talk I wanna hear–” 

“ _Tony_ ,” Steve said again. 

Tony sighed. “I know what you’re going to say, Steve. You can save yourself the trouble.” 

Steve gave him a pointed look. “Do you now?” 

“You’re going to tell me that the money doesn’t matter, and that it never mattered, and all you want is for us to be together because we love each other, blah blah blah,” Tony said in a flippant tone, but the look on his face was anything but confident. 

Steve cupped Tony’s face with his hands and looked him in the eye. “Tony, you are the single most important thing in my life. We could be a billionaires, or we could be homeless on the street, or we could be living in a cramped studio apartment above a Chinese restaurant that doesn’t have hot water half the time–” 

“Which is literally our situation right now–” 

“And I would still follow you. I’d follow you _anywhere_ , Tony. All I want–all I _need_ –is to be with you, because I love you, and nothing will ever change that.” 


	19. Assurance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/129930117798/assurance-stevetony-ficlet).

“I don’t see what the big deal is, Steve.” Natasha remarks, examining the document she’s holding. “You guys are married, after all.”

“The date, Tasha,” Steve clarifies. His voice is surprisingly steady given his entire body has been shaking from nerves since he found the papers in the dusty leather folder over an hour ago. “Look at the date.”

“What’s wrong with the—Oh.” Natasha blinks and reads the top of the paper again. “Oh, wow. Oooookay,” she drawls, “I guess you’re allowed to freak out a bit.

“A bit?! Nat, this is—I don’t even _know_ what to make of all this!”

"You could take it as a sign of trust.”

“Trust? Nat, he was completely out of line. Don’t they have to swear that he’s of sound mind and body—”“

"His lawyer, accountant and physician all signed off on it. Tony obviously thought it was the right thing to do, Steve. Things like this… they aren’t last minute decisions. It’s clear that he had been thinking about it for a while, so shouldn’t we respect his decision?” the redhead asks. “Besides, like I said, you guys are married. It would’ve happened anyway.”

“That’s not the _point_ , Nat!” Steve exclaims, his voice slightly higher-pitched than usual. “Tony listed me as the primary beneficiary in his will a _month_ after we started dating!”

"He liked it so much he wanted to put a ring on it?” Natasha offers lamely. “Aaand a multi-billion dollar company, a half-dozen houses, and more cars than the DMV on a Saturday?”

“Why the hell would he—I can’t even—What are the—”

“Okay, Steve, I love you, but if you don’t calm the hell down, then I am going to make you,” she threatens. She flashes him a pleased smile when he sits next to her on the large bed.

“Sorry,” he says with a sigh. “Pepper should be getting the company, though.”

“According to this, she’d still be CEO,” Natasha informs. “You’d just assume Tony’s role as President. Makes everything a lot easier for any children you guys might have—”

“ _Children_?!”

“Jesus Christ, Steve. _Might_. I said ‘ _might_ ,” she clarifies. “I always thought Stark would be the one with commitment issues.”

Steve does something that could only be classified as a ‘pout’ and Natasha’s not sure how a supersoldier could look that adorable. “I don’t have commitment issues.”

"Sure, you don’t. It isn’t like it took you over a year to ask Tony out—”

“I didn’t know he was interested!”

“Or waited a week to respond to his proposal—”

“He asked me as I was getting on a quinjet for a mission. How the hell was I supposed to respond—”

“Or are freaking out about kids even though you two have been married for almost _four_ years—”

"…Okay, I see your point.”


	20. puppy love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/135214491488/puppy-love-fic-stevetony-11) for 2016's 12 Days of Stony.

“What the hell is that?”

Tony eyed the offending four-legged creature warily, taking a cautious step back when it tried to jump out of Steve’s arms.

“Don’t be mean,” Steve admonished. “Don’t listen to Tony, little guy. He’s a cranky old man,” he cooed to the beagle in his arms. 

“Excuse me?” Tony squawked.

“Cranky and _loud_ ,” Steve added. 

Tony didn’t think it was possible for puppies to snicker, but he was almost positive that that’s exactly what the dog was doing. 

Tony looked over Steve’s shoulder

“Why did you get a dog?” Tony asked. “I thought we agreed to get a cat.”

“I _did_ get a cat.” Steve set the dog on the floor and it quickly scurried over to Tony’s feet.

Tony awkwardly bent over and tried to pet the top of its head but got a handful of slobber instead. “Well, I don’t know how the shelter managed to trick Captain America because this is clearly not a cat.”

Steve rolled his eyes. “Obviously not. The cat’s wandering around the tower.”

Tony quirked an eyebrow. “You got a dog _and_ a cat?”

“I didn’t _mean_ to…”

“What do you mean by that?” Tony asked dubiously. “How do you accidentally adopt a dog?”

“I went to the shelter this morning to get the British shorthair we picked out online, but as I was leaving this little guy was looking at me–”

“If you say anything about his big, innocent brown eyes, I swear to god, Steve, I will–”

“–with these big, innocent brown puppy dog eyes and I couldn’t look away, Tony,” Steve said dramatically. “I tried to walk away, but it was physically impossible.”

“You’re ridiculous,” Tony said, shaking his head. “I can’t believe I married such a sap.” 

Steve picked up the puppy again and held it out towards Tony’s face. “I dare you to say ‘no’ to this face, Tony. Come on. _I dare you_.”

Tony tried to look away, but it didn’t take long at all to realize that Steve was right. It felt like the dog was staring into the very depths of his _soul_.

“No,” Tony said, but even he could tell that he didn’t really mean it.

Steve smiled triumphantly. “That’s what I thought. Oh, here’s the cat!” he said excitedly as it approached. “Hey, fella. Wanna say ‘hi’ to Tony?”

The cat jumped up on the couch and gently butted its head in Tony’s hand. Tony got the cue and started scratching behind its ear, earning him a contented purr, and that was all it took for Tony to fall in love with the cat too.

“Do they get along?” Tony asked, his gaze shifting from the cat to the dog, and back again.

“Swimmingly,” Steve replied. He set the beagle on the couch to prove his point, and Tony watched as they both cuddled up together against one of the cushions.

Steve looked like… well, a proud _parent_ , and wasn’t that a scary thought?

“Do either of them have names?”

Steve shook his head. “The dog was at the shelter for over six months, and the cat was there for more than a year.”

“No one wanted them?” Tony asked. Both of the animals looked young, particularly the beagle who looked to be no more than a year old. He couldn’t imagine why anyone wouldn’t want the two loveable creatures in their home.

“The spaniel is deaf in one ear and the cat has a, uh, heart condition,” Steve informed.

That certainly explained Tony’s instant connection with the cat.

“So what are we naming them?” Tony asked.

“I thought you could do the honors since I kind of sprung the dog on you,” Steve said sheepishly.

“It was a nice surprise,” Tony admitted. “We’re calling the cat 'Captain Kirk.’”

Steve huffed a laugh. “You’re such a dork.”

“What? It’s better than 'Jim,’” Tony defended. He scratched behind the cat’s ear again. “What do you think? Do you approve?” Tony asked, getting another purr in response.

“Okay, okay. 'Captain Kirk’ it is,” Steve relented, but the smile on his face was fond. “Any ideas for the other guy?”

“Rover,” Tony replied immediately. “I’ve always wanted a dog named 'Rover.’”

“Rover,” Steve repeated. “I like it.”

~ ~ ~

**One month later…**

“Tony!”

Tony ran out of the bedroom to find Steve, still in his Captain America uniform, surrounded by half a dozen cats and dogs of varying ages and sizes. 

“Hi, honey,” Tony greeted lamely. “I take it your meeting with SHIELD went well?”

“What is going on?!” Steve asked, his voice bordering on hysterics.

“Oh, uh… I _may_ have stopped by the animal shelter today…”

“And you adopted every animal they had?”

“Of course, not,” Tony said. “Even I know that would be a bad idea.”

“Yes, because adopting six more animals on top of the two we already had constitutes as a 'good idea.’”

“I admit I thought you had been bullshitting me when you told me about how you accidentally adopted Rover, but you really weren’t kidding. _Look at them_ ,” Tony said, wildly gesturing to the animals that were clambering for Steve’s attention.

“How are we supposed to take care of _eight_ animals, Tony?” Steve said, exasperatedly.

“I’m already looking into hiring a nanny,” Tony assured. “JARVIS is running background checks on a couple candidates as we speak.” He clapped his hands together. “Now, Steve Rogers, light of my life, I’d like you to meet the six newest members of the Stark-Rogers clan: Gizmo, Dodger, Albie, Chewie, Tesla and Matisse.”

Steve gave him a strange look. “Albie and Chewie?”

“Albie is cuter than ‘Einstein,’” Tony explained. “I call that one ‘Chewie’ because it’s short for Chewbacca… aaaaand because that little guy may or may not have chewed up your favorite pair of running shoes.”


	21. wrinkles and all

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve makes a joke about Tony being old. 
> 
> it does not go well. 
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/132434652798/lmfao-im-sorrybut-does-anyone-else-think-this).

“Nope.” 

“Tony,” Steve whined. “Tony, Tony, Tony.” 

“Stop it,” Tony said. He ignored Steve’s pleading eyes; ignored the feeling of Steve’s warm body pressed against his own when Steve climbed onto his lap; ignored the way Steve snaked his arms around Tony’s waist. 

He most certainly ignored the way Steve was nuzzling at his neck, murmuring “I’m sorry’s” and “I love you’s” into his skin. 

Tony remained still, keeping his gaze fixed on the television in front of him. “Whatever you’re trying to do isn’t going to work.” 

“I’m not doing anything,” Steve said innocently. 

“Sure, you’re not.” 

“Tony, look at me.” Steve gently butt his head against Tony’s shoulder when he refused to acknowledge him. “Please?” 

“Go away.” 

“I don’t wanna go away,” Steve replied, peppering kisses on Tony’s face. “I wanna stay here with you.” 

“Are you sure you don’t wanna run off with Beth or Jennifer or Scott or any of those other SHIELD agents that you’ve become so fond of? I’m sure they’re all much younger and much more fit than I am.” 

“None of that matters to me–” 

“I overheard you talking to Clint,” Tony interjected. “I may be a lot of things, but I’m not–and I quote–a _grandpa_.” Tony knew it was petty, but he was already well aware of the age gap between him and Steve. He really didn’t need any additional reminders of the fact. 

Steve frowned. “I never said that. I would _never_ say that. Clint–” 

Tony rolled his eyes. “I know Clint said it, but you didn’t deny it,” he muttered. 

“I didn’t think I’d have to. He was _clearly_ joking,” Steve reasoned. “Tony, babe, honey, _sweetie_ –” 

“Oh, God. You’re pulling the ‘sweetie’ card–” 

“Is it working?” Steve asked. 

Tony scoffed. “No.” 

Steve groaned and clawed pathetically at Tony’s shirt. “C’mon, Tony. This is ridiculous. I love you, you know that,” he said. “I love everything about you.” 

Tony pouted. “Wrinkles and all?” 

Steve laughed and kissed his nose. “Wrinkles and all.” 


	22. Escort!Steve AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt for 12 Days of Stony: "first."
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/135387681738/fic-escortsteve-stevetony-1).

Steve’s first time happens in a pick-up truck. 

He and his date are seventeen and slightly tipsy thanks to the flask that Steve had smuggled in his jacket pocket. They had left the prom hours ago to drive out to the infamous lookout point just outside of town.

They talk and take turns sipping the cheap whiskey, and eventually they find themselves kissing. In the grand scheme of things, they barely know each other—having only met a couple of months prior because of a mutual friend. Steve thinks it’s just fine because he likes this guy, and he’s pretty sure the feeling is mutual. 

Steve’s knee almost knocks against the gear-shift before his date suggests they move to the bed of the truck, and Steve then proceeds to spend a good four minutes fumbling with the zipper of his date’s pants. Steve’s date is more experienced, though not by much. 

It’s awkward. It’s fast and sloppy and not at all like the movies had said it would be. 

~

They do it again a few times over the summer before they go off to college, and Steve uses it as a learning opportunity. He learns how to fuck, what it’s like to _be_ fucked, and the advantages and disadvantages of various positions.

He also learns of the _many_ pros of his lack of a gag reflex.

~

He goes to college and spends mornings in class, afternoons in the studio, and nights partying with his friends. His roommate, Bucky, introduces him to Peggy halfway through sophomore year, and she and Steve hit it off right away. 

They spend two blissful years together going on dates to the café or the movies, cooking dinners together in the poor excuse of a kitchen in their dorm, and fucking like rabbits.

Peggy gets a job at a prestigious company in Europe, and they break up a week before graduation. Steve’s heartbroken, of course, but he eventually gets a job as an illustrator for a magazine. The pay sucks, but he and Bucky find an affordable apartment close to his office, so that makes up for it… slightly.

~

Steve’s just shy of his 23rd birthday when he’s approached by a tall woman with short dark hair wearing a suit that probably cost more than Steve’s childhood home. 

He’s working as a freelance artist, barely scraping by as it is when his mother gets sick. He’s pacing in the hallway of the hospital trying to figure out a way to finance the care that his mother desperately needs. He walks into Maria Hill, who’s there to visit a friend recovering from an appendectomy, and almost causes her to spill her coffee all over her satin blouse. 

He apologizes profusely, but she doesn’t look the least bit miffed by the ordeal. She takes a business card out of her purse and gives it to Steve with a smile that is just as friendly as it is predatory, if that were even possible.

“Our firm upholds the utmost professionalism,” Hill says. She promises him good benefits and even better money, and he finds himself signing a contract by the end of the day.

~

He gets his first job only three days later attending some charity function with a woman a good ten to fifteen years older than he is. She’s in the middle of a very messy divorce with her husband who spends more time in the bottle than he does with their kids. 

They fuck on the down cover of a $3,000 a night hotel room, and again in the backseat of the limo. She leaves him with lipstick stains on his collar and a very generous tip which leaves Steve able to pay off a good amount of his mother’s hospital bills.

Steve spends the rest of the night scrubbing the scent of magnolias and vanilla off his skin.

The calls come in regularly after that. Steve’s lucky he’s in such high demand that he can afford to be more selective, and Hill doesn’t care so long as she gets her fair share of the profits.

~

“Is your boss okay with you missing out on so much work?” Sarah asks during one of Steve’s daily visits. Her voice is hoarse, and her skin is paler than the last time he had seen it, but there’s still the fiery spark in her eyes that he’s always remembered.

For a moment, he forgets that he’s still supposed to be working as an illustrator.

“She’s very understanding,” he tells her with the most convincing smile he can muster. 

~

Bucky finds out. Of course, he finds out. 

“You’re gonna get yourself hurt,” he says. His voice is edged with anger and disapproval, but there’s genuine concern on his face.

“I’ll be fine,” Steve says, despite the slight sting from the fading bruises on his hips. The man, the spoiled son of some big-shot CEO, was slightly younger than Steve. He had been surprisingly pleasant company during the charity dinner, but was a lot rougher than Steve had expected when he was dragged down into one of the empty rooms of the mansion they were in.

“You always say that.”

“Because I _will_ be,” Steve insists. “It’ll only be until my ma’s bills are paid off.”

~

When Steve is 24, Sarah Rogers dies of complications from her illness.

He gives his two-weeks’ notice to Hill and spends the rest of the month looking for a new job. The magazine he used to do a lot of work for had long-ago gone under, and he’s nowhere near qualified for any of the jobs he applies for, so he eventually goes back to the agency because, as much as Steve hates it, student loans are still a thing. 

~

Steve is 25 when Hill gives him the number of a new client.

He calls the number later that night, and the voice on the other end is tentative and obviously young. It’s evident that ~~he~~ _Tony_ isn’t like any of the other clients that Steve has had.

They talk on the phone for over an hour and agree to meet at Tony’s apartment the next night.

~

Steve shows up at Tony’s door wearing jeans and a hoodie, and Tony—young, smart and endearingly nervous Tony—opens the door and invites him inside for dinner. 

They settle at the table with a pizza and a six-pack, and they talk for hours. Steve doesn’t have to be a genius to know that Tony is good-looking, what with his dark hair and crystal blue eyes and evidently toned physique (“I do a lot of manual labor in my lab,” Tony had said earlier). 

It’s nearly midnight when Steve gets to his feet and saunters over to Tony’s chair, settling himself on Tony’s lap before leaning down and capturing Tony’s lips in his.

They eventually stumble into Tony’s bedroom, and if Tony’s inexperience hadn’t already made itself apparent, it sure as was obvious now.

“You haven’t done this before,” Steve says. It isn’t so much as a question as it is confirmation.

Tony’s eyes reluctantly meet his as he shakes his head. “I had… There was one guy before I came to college, but he… It was a graduation party and we were both drunk.”

“Did he hurt you?” Steve asks.

Tony shrugs, and that’s all the answer that Steve needs. 

Steve nods and kisses him quiet as he strips them both of their clothes, and lays Tony out on the bed. Steve takes his time, his mouth and hands roaming over every inch of Tony’s skin before Steve blows him, and Steve realizes that Tony is absolutely _gorgeous_ when he comes.

He wants to let Tony know just how good sex can be—that it’s more than just two people trying to get each other off.

Steve learns what Tony likes and doesn’t like, and he lets Tony fuck him as his hands grip the cotton sheets.

Steve is 25 when he becomes Tony’s first in every _real_ sense of the word.

Tony asks him to stay the night, and Steve can’t find it in him to say no.

~

They get coffee the next morning before Tony walks him to the subway.

Steve digs into his pocket, takes out the handful of hundreds that Tony had given him earlier, and slips them into Tony’s hand. He leaves a lingering kiss on the corner of the man’s mouth and tells him to call if he’s ever in need of Steve’s services again.

Steve’s just walking through the front door of his apartment an hour later when his phone chimes with a simple, one-word text message:

 _Friday?_

Steve smiles.


	23. give and take (616)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 12 Days of Stony Prompt: cold
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/135287802233/give-and-take-616stevetony-15k-11).

Steve hated the cold.

As a child, he spent winters in bed, swaddled in every blanket in his family’s apartment as the other kids on the block played outside in the snow. His teenage years weren’t all that different except that he had Bucky to keep him company.

Then came the war. 

His new body ensured that he would never get sick again, but being out on the front lines in enemy territory in the dead of winter with only a shield strapped to his back wasn’t exactly a happy memory.

Being frozen for seventy years in the Arctic wasn’t something he looked back on very fondly either.

The future was… well, different. 

Everything was bigger, faster and louder—overwhelming for Steve’s heightened senses—but none of it was necessarily _bad_. 

Almost immediately, Steve found a team. From that team, he found a family, and in that family, he found a home. Steve saved the world on a bi-weekly basis, all while trying to navigate his way through the constantly changing world, but there was one thing that remained constant, and that was Tony.

Steve fell into an easy friendship with Tony, and falling into a relationship with him seemed like the most natural thing in the world. 

Life with Tony—life with the _Avengers_ —was never boring. Each day brought along a new adventure and a different set of challenges, and no two days in the ~~mansion~~ _tower_ were ever the same. 

Tonight, Steve lay in bed after an unusually quiet day. He had spent the morning running errands, visited kids in the hospital after lunch, and hosted the monthly game night with the rest of the team. He and Tony had retreated to their room after a game of Monopoly that nearly ended in a heated shouting match between Logan and Jennifer Walters. After a couple hours of some very enthusiastic and very athletic sex, Steve had announced he was going to sleep, while Tony had retrieved a tablet and caught up on the work he had missed that morning because of… well, more sex.

But now, it was nearly eleven at night, an hour after the endorphins of Steve’s last orgasm had worn off, and Steve was wide awake. 

Wide awake and cold.

The room was a comfortable temperature, Tony always made sure of that, but there were some nights where Steve could still feel the chill of the ice deep in his bones. The episodes were random at best, and occurred much less frequently than when he had first woken from the ice, but that didn’t make them any easier to endure.

He was clothed in a pair of fleece pajama pants, wool socks, and a long-sleeve t-shirt, but he couldn’t suppress the shiver that wracked through his body. It didn’t help that his side of the bed gave him a bird’s eye view of the city which, while breathtaking, was covered in a thick blanket of fresh, white snow.

He brought his knees up to his chest, trying to will the cold away, and burrowed deeper under the covers. The rustle of the sheets was enough to slow the tapping of Tony’s fingers on his tablet before stopping altogether.

“You okay?” Tony asked, his voice laced with concern.

Steve peered over the edge of the duvet and nodded. 

“Are you cold?”

Steve shook his head. “I’m okay.”

“Liar,” Tony said, but there was no heat in it. He shut off his tablet, and the room immediately darkened—the only remaining light emitting from Tony’s chest. Tony placed the device on the nightstand and motioned for Steve to come closer. “Jesus, you’re shivering.”

Steve edged forward, eventually resting his head on Tony’s lap and wrapping one arm around his waist while the other settled across his legs. He buried his face in the thinning cotton of Tony’s sweatshirt, inhaling the familiar scent of soap and metal. 

One of Tony’s hands pulled the duvet over Steve’s body before coming up to card through Steve’s hair. It was longer than Steve normally preferred, but Tony had made an offhand comment a few weeks ago about how much he liked it, so Steve had decided to skip his appointment that month. Tony’s other hand was a warm weight against Steve’s shoulder; an anchor grounding him to the present, to the two of them—just him and Tony—in their bed.

Steve felt the tension in his shoulders dissipate with every feather light touch of Tony’s fingers, his body relaxing and melding against Tony’s like they were one. 

Tony continued to hold him, even when his tablet chimed to notify him of a new e-mail. Steve hoped it wasn’t too important. He tried to squash the surge of guilt that pushed its way to the forefront of his thoughts, but it didn’t matter because Tony’s tablet chimed again. Twice.

“Sorry,” Steve mumbled, regretting it immediately when the hand in his hair stilled. 

“Steve—” Tony started to say, but Steve ignored him, pressing further into Tony’s warmth in hopes that would be enough for Tony to ignore his slip. 

He was mildly disappointed when Tony made no move to continue his earlier ministrations.

“What do you have to be sorry for?” Tony questioned instead. 

“You were working, and I…” Steve trailed off, the words dying in his throat. He was tired of feeling like this—of constantly being plagued by the cold, seeking Tony out because, for some reason, he was the only person that could always make him feel even the slightest bit better. Tony had always assured him he didn’t mind, and the selfish part of Steve indulged in that even if it made him feel guilty at the same time. 

Tony nudged his shoulder, urging him to sit up, and Steve did, because he couldn’t deny Tony anything if he tried (not that he would ever want to).

Tony’s hands framed Steve’s face—they were roughened and hard after years of working, but his touch was gentle, and Steve leaned into it. He loved it, loved the feeling of Tony’s skin against his, and Steve knew that he would never get tired of the underlying crackle of electricity that pulsed in Steve’s veins.

“Steve,” Tony said softly, and when Steve looked up he immediately noticed the worry etched into the striking blues of Tony’s eyes. It wasn’t the first time Steve had ever seen that look on Tony’s face—years of Avenging and near-death experiences made it a pretty regular occurrence—but it wasn’t until relatively recently that Steve learned that _this_ particular look was reserved for Steve and Steve only.

“Steve,” Tony tried again. “I’m always here for you.”

“I know,” Steve answered. “I know that, I just—”

“No, I don’t think you do.” His thumb grazed over the corner of Steve’s mouth. “When we first met, I said that you could come to me if you ever needed anything.”

“That was over ten years ago,” Steve recalled. Ten years ago, when Steve had woken up to find his entire world ripped out from under his feet. “You barely knew me then.” 

“I know you now,” Tony said matter-of-factly, “and I’ve known you better than most for the past nine and a half years. I know that I meant it then and I mean it now. I always will.”

Steve’s fingers splayed over the R.T. in Tony’s chest so the light shone between his fingers, watching the light cast shadows on the sharp features of Tony’s face. “I feel like all I ever do is ask more of you,” he admitted. “You already give me so much.”

“I’d keep giving even if you didn’t ask,” Tony said sincerely. “It’s just easier for me when you do.”

Steve couldn’t help it—he leaned forward and pressed their lips together. His arms instinctively wrapped around Tony’s waist, pulling the man closer until Steve could feel the hard edge of Tony’s R.T. node against his own chest. Tony had always been self-conscious of it, but Steve didn’t mind—it was a reminder of Tony’s brilliance, that Tony was alive, his heart beating beneath the glass surface.

Tony took it upon himself to deepen the kiss, tilting his head only to slot their mouths together again, and Steve was helpless to do anything but melt into it. Steve could hear the blood pounding in his ears as a fire sparked in the very center of his chest and chased away the fragments of the ice left in his body.

Tony continued to take and take and take, and Steve let him. He knew it would be impossible to give Tony everything he wanted—everything he _deserved_ —but Steve figured this would be a good place to start.

It felt like hours later before they parted, their lips swollen and cheeks flushed, but Steve knew logically that it had only been a couple minutes. He was already breathing hard, which wasn’t necessarily a surprise. It didn’t matter how long he and Tony had been together because Tony always had that effect on him, and Steve knew, deep down, that he always would.

Tony brushed the stray hairs away from Steve’s forehead before playfully kissing his nose. “Still cold?” he asked, eyes sparkling with mirth.

“No,” Steve replied with a smile that mirrored Tony’s own. “Not anymore.”


	24. college friends with benefits AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: college au where tony and steve become fuck buddies, fall helplessly in love but being dweebs about it
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/96833781403/college-au-where-tony-and-steve-become-fuck).

They meet fall semester of their junior year in an art history class. Steve needs to take the class for his major, but Tony’s only there for the elective credits. He gets to class, skims through the boring text book for a couple minutes and almost walks out, but Steve (who is running a few minutes late because of practice) stumbles in and sits next to him, and Tony thinks the class might actually be all right. 

They get paired up to work on a project together, and it’s through their late night meetings at the coffee shop that they get to know each other over the course of the month. Tony falls for Steve in every single way imaginable, but given his string of unsuccessful ‘relationships,’ he doesn’t decide to pursue anything with him (at least not so soon). 

But one day, Steve invites Tony to a party that his team is throwing later that night, and Tony obviously goes, and brings a couple of his fraternity brothers too. 

The place is extremely crowded, and it takes Tony almost twenty minutes to find Steve, who’s chatting with a bunch of kids Tony recognizes from around campus. Steve sees him and immediately makes his way over. 

They talk (which is something that the two of them seem to be really good at with each other), get drunk, dance, and eventually go back to Tony’s place and hook up. 

And it happens again after another party the next weekend.

Then again while working on their homework. 

And again, and again until they’re pretty much exclusive. 

Tony over the moon that Steve wants him—maybe Steve doesn’t want him in the same way that Tony does, but Tony’s perfectly okay with just spending time with him. 

They act perfectly normal in class, and in public settings in general, but every night, one of them texts the other asking him to come over, and they sleep together again. 

It isn’t until about two months into this arrangement that Steve explicitly asks Tony if he wants to stay the night. Tony nods dumbly and they fall asleep together, and have lazy morning sex that puts Tony in a visibly good mood for the rest of the day. 

Tony’s friends worry about his attachment to the star athlete, but Tony just shrugs it off and goes on a date with someone from his computer science class just to prove a point. 

Of course, Steve’s at the same restaurant with a couple of his teammates, and being the perfect gentleman that he is, stops by and says ‘hello’ before leaving. 

Tony doesn’t get a text from him that night. 

They’re perfectly civil in class the next day, but Steve doesn’t text him at all for the next two weeks. 

It isn’t until the night of Tony’s fraternity’s biggest party that he gets the guts to text Steve himself. 

And by that, he means getting belligerently drunk and sending him multiple incoherent texts and voice mails. 

Steve runs over to his house and finds him sitting by himself on the floor of his room, mumbling absolute nonsense. Steve gives him some water and helps him into bed, but Tony grabs his arm and asks him to stay. Steve does. 

Tony wakes up with a headache, but surprisingly, it isn’t one of the worst he’s ever had. He looks over at his nightstand and finds a couple empty water bottles, which helps explain his not so unbearable state. 

He turns over on his side and finds himself face to face with Steve, and the events of the previous night slowly come back to him. 

“Oh, God. I called you, didn’t I?” Tony says mortified. 

“Nine times,” Steve affirms. “You left me about three dozen text messages too." 

"Sorry,” Tony says sheepishly. “I must’ve been a mess." 

Steve shrugs. “It’s fine. You sounded like you needed help, so… I came.” 

They lay there silently for a few minutes before Tony speaks again: “I miss this.” 

"I don’t think we’ve ever done this." 

"I mean, waking up next to you." 

Steve’s eyes soften. “Me, too.” 

"You do?" 

"I miss _you_.” 

"Can we… I mean, I’d like to… Before when we…” Tony trails off.

“Can I take you to dinner?” Steve injerjects. 

“Dinner?” Tony repeats, perplexed. "Like a date?“ 

"Yeah." 

"Yeah, that’d be nice,” Tony answers. “Is this the part where we kiss and make up or something?” he jokes. 

Steve shoves him off the bed. “Not with that morning breath.”


	25. miscommunication (616)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> excerpt from a 616 WIP where tony is oblivious and steve makes assumptions
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/81264738150/excerpt-from-a-wip-616-fic-in-which-tony-is).

“What the hell was that?" 

Steve looked at him incredulously. ”…a kiss?“ 

Tony sputtered. "I know _that_ , I mean– _Why_?" 

"I know the 1940’s were only six months ago for me, but I thought that’s what people did on dates… unless things have changed since then?" 

"We're _dating_?!" 

Steve blushed. "I was under the impression that we are… were,” he corrected, kicking his boot against the concrete floor. "Now, I’m thinking I probably misread things.“ 

Tony was still baffled. "How could you think that we’re dating?" 

"You buy me ridiculous gifts, we go out to dinner almost every night for the past two months, and we spend practically every spare moment together!” Steve exclaimed. “Of _course_ I thought we were dating!" 

Dating. 

Steve thought they were _dating_. 

Tony had spent the past two months trying to ask Steve out and the supersoldier _already_ thought they were dating. 

Tony didn’t know if he wanted to laugh at the irony, or kick himself for wasting so much time that they could’ve spent moving their relationship forward. 

"I’m really sorry if I made things um, awkward.” Steve rubbed the back of his neck. “If we could just forget all of this and–and just go back to our regular work rout–Why are you laughing?" 

Tony couldn’t help it. What started out as a snicker turned into full-blown laughter. Why did he always find himself in such ridiculous situations? 

Steve frowned. "I don’t think it’s that funny…" 

Tony shook his head. "No, this whole thing is fucking _hilarious_. Steve, I’ve been trying to ask you out– _properly_ ask you out–for the past two months." 

Steve still looked disbelieving. "But you did." 

"I don’t think, ‘let’s go for burgers,’ really warrants as asking you on a date." 

"I heard that you’re usually forward with others,” Steve said with a shrug. “I thought that’s just how things are done these days." 


	26. stubborn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Steve/Tony + "grab"
> 
> Originally posted [here](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/144258713588/onemuseleft-asked-for-stevetony-grab-one)

“That was the dumbest stunt you’ve ever pulled, Rogers.”

“Nice to see you too, Tony,” Steve drawled, not even wincing as the medic continues stitching up the gash on his forehead. The medic seems to sense the tension between the two men because she works impossibly faster, finishing the last stitch and packing her supplies in the blink of an eye. 

Steve murmurs a sincere “thank you” to the medic before she scurries off, and then he turns his gaze on Tony. “You okay?”

“Shut up,” Tony snaps. “Just–-For once, I wish you’d just _listen_ to me when I–”

“If you’re asking for an apology, you’re not getting one,” Steve says resolutely.

Tony clenches his fists at his sides. “Why are you so goddamn _stubborn_?”

“Why are you making such a big deal out of this?” Steve counters. He stands up, towering over Tony, and Tony gets even _more_ irritated.

“I’m not–Okay, fine.” Tony jabs a finger at Steve’s chest. “You asked if I was okay? Well, I’m _not_. I’m not fucking _okay_ because you almost died.”

The corner of Steve’s mouth ticks upwards. “But I didn’t.”

“You could’ve,” Tony mutters. “Just as easily as anyone else. You aren’t invincible.”

Steve sighs. “I know, but you’re safe, and that’s all that really matters to me.”

Tony swears he feels his already weak heart stop when he hears the admission. _It’s not fair_ , he thinks. They had been dancing around each other for years, and the universe has decided that _now_ is the right time for–

“I’m sorry for making you worry, but I’m not sorry for what I did,” Steve says quietly. “I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you safe.”

Tony shakes his head and furiously fights back the wave of tears threatening to fall. “I’m not worth it.”

“You’re wrong.”

Tony laughs bitterly. “If I had a nickel for every time I heard that–”

“Wouldn’t matter. You’d still have more money than you know what to do with.”

Tony feels Steve’s hand on his arm, and he lets the other man turn him back around, but Tony resolutely does not meet his eyes. “I have… I need to go. Mrs. Arbogast is going to have my head if I miss my meeting again and–”

“Tony.”

The quiet way that Steve says his name is what finally makes Tony look back up, but he doesn’t even get the chance to get lost in the brilliant blues of Steve’s eyes because Steve hauls him closer and kisses him.


End file.
